The Desolate Era

by S.H.A aifu

Fate had never been kind to Ji Ning. Wracked by illnesses and infirm his entire life on Earth, Ning knew early on that he would die as a teenager. What he didn’t know was that there really was such a thing as life after death, and that the universe was a far larger place than he thought. A lucky twist of fate (one of the few in Ning’s life) meant that Ning was reborn into a world o

12. 10 14 - 11 7

Read The Desolate Era - Chapter 14 – The Immortal Grass Palace online free - Novel Full

Chapter 14 – The Immortal Grass Palace

"How strong are the Dao-soldiers of the monsters in this Immortal estate world?" Youngflame Nong frowned.

He understood that the biggest obstacles to him binding this Immortal estate were the local monster races present. They had all been trapped in this tiny world for far too long; every generation dreamed of leaving. This sort of powerful desire was something which would cause them to be willing to sacrifice anything. The worst thing was, these monstrous Dao-soldiers were all extremely powerful.

"The two most powerful forces are the Titanwave Dao-soldier formation and the Yaksha Dao-soldier formation," Xiangliu Fang said. "These two forces both have more than ten thousand Dao-soldiers, and the leaders of each are at the Earth Immortal or Loose Immortal level."

"Both are at the Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal level?" Youngflame Nong was surprised.

"Right. They each should have one," Xiangliu Fang said. "The Titanwave Dao-soldier formation's leader should be a bit stronger. As for the Yaksha Dao-soldier formation's leader, although their Immortal is a bit weaker, as a whole, they are stronger…against these two forces, even the most supreme of Loose Immortals would be beaten so badly they would have no choice but to flee!"

Xiangliu Fang was a true, primordial Fiendgod, and one of the Hydraga race at that. Although he was at the peak Primal level, he was comparable to a supreme Loose Immortal in actual combat power.

The slightly weaker Titanwave Dao-soldier formation was already powerful enough to force Xiangliu Fang into constant flight. The Yaksha Dao-soldier formation was also able to dominate Xiangliu Fang with ease.

"It isn't too likely that we would be able to defeat them." Xiangliu Fang shook his head. "Even if a few extra Loose Immortals came, it would be far from being enough."

"The Immortal estate has five palaces in total," Youngflame Nong said in a low voice. "Right now, I've bound one of them. I'm confident in being able to move to the other two palaces, but the final two will be troublesome."

"Young master Youngflame, you are confident in being able to go to two palaces?" Mu Northson said with surprise, "Since you can go to two, why can't you go to all four?"

Ning and the others all looked towards Youngflame Nong, confused. The two monstrous forces were waiting outside; how were they supposed to charge past them?

"You don't understand," Youngflame Nong said with a laugh, "I've already bound this Vault of Treasures. This palace is extremely large, one of the five main pillars of the entire Immortal estate world, capable of affecting an area of ten thousand kilometers around it. By relying on the key to the Immortal estate, I can open a corridor, allowing us to exit this palace at any location within ten thousand kilometers of this palace."

"If these two monstrous forces choose to just wait close nearby, then I can move us to a location thousands of kilometers away from them. Afterwards, by relying on Uncle Fang's evasive techniques, we can hurry towards the next palace."

Ning and the others now understood.

"After I bind all five palaces, I can appear in any location within this Immortal estate world!" Youngflame Nong sighed, "But right now, I've only bound one."

"Young master Youngflame, by using this ability," Xue Hongyi said with astonished delight, "Can't you just go into all four of the palaces? There's no way these monstrous forces can possibly prevent us from entering."

"You are wrong." Youngflame Nong shook his head and sighed. "They have been sealed within this Immortal estate world for too long, and so they've forgotten about the power of the palaces. But once I use the palace to move us to a location thousands of kilometers away…as soon as I use this technique, they'll know that it is possible for us to do this. By then, they will probably go and guard the palaces which I have yet to bind."

The looks on everyone's faces grew solemn. Right! Five major palaces…there was no need for the monstrous forces to wait for them outside. They could just go and completely surround and guard the palaces that had yet to be bound! For the sake of binding the Immortal estate, Youngflame Nong would still have to charge towards them, even though he knew that the unbound palaces were now surrounded in rings of protection.

"Lying in wait to catch the hare!" Ning murmured this saying to himself. "The unbound palaces…Youngflame Nong has to go there. As long as they surround the unbound palaces with layers of protection, then…there will be no way for us to avoid them."

Lying in wait to catch the hare was a seemingly clumsy technique. But this technique was aimed at their weak point; Ning's group would have no other options other than to fall into the trap.

"Well, there's nothing we can do. Let's first go bind two of the palaces," Youngflame Nong said. "Let's go!"

In the area around the pillar of light which represented the Vault of Treasures. The two most powerful monstrous forces of this world were gathered here. The Titanwave Dao-soldier formation and the Yaksha Dao-soldier formation were both present.

"Duohe, this time, the two of us should set aside our differences and work together to deal with the humans and seize the key to the Immortal estate."

"Witchsui, if your Witchriver clan is willing to join forces, I naturally will be delighted to comply."

These were the two most powerful figures of the entire Immortal estate world. One was an old Loose Immortal, Immortal Duohe, who had lived for more than a hundred thousand years. The other was Immortal Witchsui, who had only lived for ten thousand years. The two of them immediately swore an oath to the Dao of the Heavens to join forces on this day.

For the sake of being able to leave, they would be willing to sacrifice anything.

The two sides continued to wait quietly. A long time later…

"Eh?" The two Loose Immortals, as well as some Primal Diremonsters, simultaneously turned their heads to stare thousands of kilometers away. There, a warship suddenly appeared out of nowhere. And then, aboard the warship, Xiangliu Fang's body suddenly blurred, transforming into an enormous Fiendgod that was three thousand meters tall, with the lower body of a serpent and nine heads. The Fiendgod Hydraga clutched the warship in his claws, then used an evasive technique, fleeing at an utterly astonishing speed.

Swoosh!

He left behind only a streak of light in the air. This caused both Immortal Duohe and the Witchriver clan to be flabbergasted. They knew very well that in terms of speed, they couldn't possibly catch up with that Fiendgod. Since they had already started at a distance of thousands of kilometers…there was no hope at all.

"How could this be? How could they have suddenly appeared thousands of kilometers away?"

"When they had entered the palace, they had all been very close to it."

"They had to be very close to enter…why were they able to leave at a distance of thousands of kilometers?"

Even countless years ago, when Immortal Witchriver was still alive and the master of this place, his clansmen didn't fully understand the special powers of these palaces. And now that countless years had passed? How could these monsters possibly understand them?

"They must have bound the palace. The palace is under their control, which is why they were able to do something so unique," Immortal Duohe said.

"That has to be the case," Immortal Witchsui agreed.

"The Immortal estate has five palaces in total. They've only bound one. There are four which remain unbound. Let us each guard one of the unbound palaces; unless they give up their quest, they will have to fight us head on," Immortal Duohe said.

The two sides quickly agreed on a plan, and they howled through the air as they flew at high speed towards two of the distant golden Skypillars of light.

"The worst case scenario has already come to pass." The nine-headed, serpent-bodied Hydraga was still clutching the warship. Within the warship, Youngflame Nong, Ji Ning, and the others were watching those two distant monstrous powers begin to move. They hadn't moved to pursue or attack; rather, they had flown off into two different directions, towards two of those golden Skypillars of light.

"I have to bind this Immortal estate." Youngflame Nong gritted his teeth. "These monsters…damn them. Damn them!"

Soon, the enormous Hydraga Fiendgod, warship in one hand, had arrived at one of the other golden Skypillars of light.

"Go in." Youngflame Nong activated the key to the Immortal estate, opening up a corridor.

Ji Ning and the others all felt a certain somberness. They were able to easily enter this time, but that was only because there were no monsters blocking them. Two of the five palaces, however, were now under heavy guard; how could those two palaces be so easily traversed?

Whoosh.

The Hydraga shrank himself, once more entering the warship, and the entire warship flew into the opened tunnel.

An incomparably massive hall, so large that it was more than a thousand times larger than the first hall they had entered in the Vault of Treasures.

"It's so big." Ning's group was completely amazed. Looking at this world felt like looking at an entire continent.

This utterly massive hall actually really was a miniature sealed world. In the skies above it, a 'sun' was blazing with endless light and heat. In the earth below, there were countless types of spirit-grass and spirit-fruit that were growing. During the passage of countless years, the Immortal grass here had been taken care of by some constructs, but hadn't truly been nourished properly.

These types of spirit-grass and spirit-fruit generally needed many unique treasures in order to grow properly. Still, despite that, after the passage of countless years, some truly rare and precious specimens of spirit-grass and spirit-fruit had appeared.

"Immortal grass and Immortal fruit!" Ning and the others were overjoyed.

WHOOSH!

Suddenly, the Fiendgod Hydraga by Youngflame Nong's side stretched his hands out. His hands quickly increased in size as his fingers transformed into ten giant snakes, covering the skies as they swept out towards the entire region of Immortal grass. In a twinkling, the eighteen types of Immortal grass and spirit-fruit with the densest elemental auras were all plucked clean.

"Growl…damn you."

"This is the Master's Immortal Grass Palace. You dared to steal his Immortal grass…damn you."

Three golems came flying out.

The Fiendgod Hydraga sent one of his giant hands outwards in a backhanded blow. The three golems were instantly sent flying away, smashing against the distant walls. And then, Xiangliu Fang sent out another hand to grab them, tossing the three Primal-level golems into his own large sack.

Only then did Xiangliu Fang come to a stop, standing there calmly by Youngflame Nong's side, as though nothing had happened.

"Uhh…."

Ning and the others stared towards the Fiendgod Hydraga in astonishment. There was no way they could compete against Xiangliu Fang, when he chose to act.

"The treasures will go to whoever obtains them. I said these words earlier. Since Uncle Fang obtained them, those things will go to Uncle Fang," Youngflame Nong laughed. "There is still quite a bit of spirit-fruit and spirit-grass remaining. Although their medicinal value is a bit lower, they still are very good."

Ning and the others couldn't help but curse in secret.

This medicinal garden left behind by Immortal Witchriver, despite the passage of countless years, had never received the top-tier treatment it deserved. The 'large fish ate the small fish, and the small fish ate the shrimp'; as a result, eighteen truly Immortal-grade spirit-fruit and spirit-grass had emerged. All of the other remaining Immortal grass and Immortal fruit had had much of their spiritual energy stolen by those eighteen. Although all of them were unhappy, Ji Ning and the others, including Xue Hongyi, still hurriedly went to collect all of the Immortal grass and Immortal fruit remaining.

"The Immortal Grass Palace is an empty place; there are barely any rooms here." Youngflame Ning quickly discovered the core of this palace; it was a quite, secluded little room built right next to the Immortal grass garden. The entire room was the core of this palace.

"The rest of you can do some sightseeing outside. You might find some treasures." Youngflame Nong calmly entered the room, beginning to bind it.

Ning and the others cursed in secret. Immortal Grass Palace, Immortal Grass Palace …from the name alone, one could tell that the treasures within consisted of Immortal grass. The Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, had already taken the most valuable specimens for himself; what other treasures could they possibly find?

Despite that, Ning and the others still separated and began a quick search. Unfortunately, this Immortal Grass Palace didn't have so much as a single skeleton within it. It made sense; this was Immortal Witchriver's personal medicinal garden. He trusted his own constructs above all, and thus forbade any of his clansmen from entering this palace.

Two hours later.

"I've already bound the Immortal Grass Palace," Youngflame Nong laughed. "Come. Let us go to the next palace."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 15 – The Desire of the Monstrous Cultivators

Within the Immortal estate world.

The three thousand meter tall Hydraga Fiendgod, warship in hand, once more used his evasive techniques to move towards a third palace.

"These local monsters…" Youngflame Nong stared coldly into the distance. Of the five Skypillars of golden light, two of them were tightly surrounded by dense clusters of Dao-soldiers. "After I bind this Immortal estate, I am definitely going to summon the clan's army and enslave all of these local monsters. They will forever serve our Youngflame clan in battle."

The local monsters of this Immortal estate were all exceptionally powerful. Even after binding the Immortal estate, Youngflame Nong wouldn't be able to do anything to these powerful monsters. Still, behind him, there was the even more powerful Youngflame clan.

"Senior apprentice-brother, what method do you think young master Youngflame will use in order to bind the final two palaces? It seems quite difficult to me. The monsters present really are a bit too powerful," Mu Northson sent mentally.

"Don't underestimate Youngflame Nong. He is one of the 'Four Dukelings' of the imperial capital; since he has dared to come accept this trial, he definitely has many things up his sleeve," Ji Ning sent back.

Swoosh! Soon, Ning's group entered a new palace.

In the midst of the sky-covering Titanwave Dao-soldier formation. The leader was a silver-haired, feather-robed, middle-aged man. His eyes flashed with electricity, and his bearing was graceful and leisurely. He was the the most powerful and longest living figure within this Immortal estate world; Immortal Duohe.

"Everyone, the moment has come for the destinies of all of us within this world to be changed. I won't try to invade or to assimilate you." Immortal Duohe stared into the distance. Right in front of him, there was another massive wave. This was a wave formed from one of the lesser monstrous powers of this world; all of the weaker monsters had been invited to come over as well.

The Immortal estate world was simply too small; it was very easy for them to gather together.

"I can even swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens that I am willing to enter an alliance with you to work together against that Fiendgod and those humans," Immortal Duohe said. "We have to acquire that key. As long as we can acquire the key…all of us who live within this Immortal estate world can leave and go to the wider world."

"Immortal Duohe, you might not act against us, but what about the Witchriver clan?"

"Don't worry. Witchsui and I have already sworn an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. At a moment like this, why should we engage in internecine strife?"

The decision came very quickly.

This was because all of the monsters present shared the same goal – to go to the greater world outside. Since they were all sincere in their desires and had no wish to squabble, the leaders naturally decided to swear oaths to the Dao of the Heavens.

Although these loose, scattered powers were seemingly small and weak, if one added them all up, they were definitely not any weaker than the ten thousand-plus Dao-soldiers which Immortal Duohe himself commanded.

"Witchsui, your Witchriver clan is a bit stronger than my forces. Let these monsters stay with me and stand on guard here," Immortal Duohe said.

"That's fine."

The proud Witchriver clan disdained from allying with the other monsters. With a teleport, Immortal Witchsui once more departed, returning to his own Yaksha Dao-soldier formation.

Ning and the others had no idea at all that the monsters outside had finally accomplished a miracle which had not been seen in all the countless years after Immortal Witchriver's death…absolute unity!

The Dao-soldiers which Immortal Witchriver had left behind consisted of two types; the 'Seawave Dao-soldiers' and the 'Yaksha Dao-soldiers'. The Seawave Dao-armors were extremely numerous. As for the more elite Yaksha Dao-armors, he had left them to his own Witchriver clan.

Now, under Immortal Duohe's command, all of the Seawave Dao-soldiers had been gathered in one place, forming a power that was no weaker than the Yaksha Dao-soldier formation! These Seawave Dao-soldiers tightly surrounded one golden Skypillar of light, while the other Yaksha Dao-soldiers tightly surrounded the other one.

"Swoosh."

Ning's group flew into the palace. This was an extremely large hall, almost identical to the Immortal Grass Palace. Within the hall were many, many corpses.

"Those are Dao-soldier armors."

"Dao-soldier armors!"

Ning's group, upon entering, was immediately stunned by the many corpses on the ground. And then, they noticed those Dao-armors.

BOOM! The Fiendgod Hydraga once more stretched out his two massive hands. With inexorable power, he snatched up the the magic treasures around two corpses that were covered with Dao-armors that were nearly translucent and which glowed with black light. These two Dao-armors both emanated incredibly powerful ripples; although they were inferior to Immortal-ranked magic treasures, they vastly surpassed the other Dao-armors.

After collecting these two Dao-armors and sets of magic treasures, the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, once more returned to stand on the warship next to Youngflame Nong, acting as though nothing had happened.

"This guy…"

Ning's group was completely helpless.

They had no time to waste for words. All of them transformed into streaks of light, beginning to frantically collect the treasures lying on the ground. The entire, massive hall had to have at least hundreds of skeletons littering it, all of which were covered by Dao-armors. These Dao-armors varied in strength; some were suitable for the Zifu level, some were suitable for the Wanxiang level, and some were even suitable for Primals.

"Those two that glowed with black light were probably meant for Loose Immortals or Earth Immortals to wear," Ning and the others mused silently to themselves.

Soon, Ning's group had completely swept through this entire hall.

This palace didn't have any private rooms; it was just a massive, empty palace.

Swish. The Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, pointed off into the distance. A black surge of divine power landed on the distant walls of the palace, and three characters instantly appeared on the wall – DAO SOLDIER PALACE.

"This is the Dao Soldier Palace," Youngflame Nong laughed. "However, Immortal Witchriver had too many Dao-soldiers, so most remained in the outside world. Only a small number of them remained in here…just now, the two Dao-armors which Uncle Fang collected can only be considered top-grade Heaven-ranked treasures; they are far from being at the level of Immortal-ranked treasures. If they were Immortal-ranked treasures, then they probably would have manifested treasure-spirits."

Ning and the others understood that Youngflame Nong was trying to console them.

Within the wide palace, there were also a series of extremely large pillars. One of them, covered in decorative carvings of a divine, coiling dragon, was the core of this palace. Youngflame Nong thus sat down in the lotus position in front of the pillar, beginning to bind it.

Ning and the others could do nothing but wait patiently to one side.

"Senior apprentice-brother, that's amazing," Northson said, seated next to Ning. He chortled, "Just now, each of us only managed to acquire a few of the treasures from those hundreds of Dao-soldier corpses, but you, senior apprentice-brother…with two spirit-beasts helping you, it was as though there were three of you scavenging at the same time. And that Azure Skysnake in particular…with a blink, she moved from corpse to corpse at astonishing speed."

Earlier, it had primarily been Ji Ning's group, Xue Hongyi, the Whitewater Hound, and Little Qing who had been scavenging the corpses. Ning, Uncle White, and Little Qing had thus made up three of the eight scavengers!

"Hmph. He ended up with the most Dao-armors as well. Still, I acquired an Immortal-ranked magic treasure; it's even better than a thousand or ten thousand Dao-armors." The nearby Xue Hongyi mused silently to himself, but he didn't dare to say anything aloud.

"Right, right. Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, after we go to the next palace, you need to take it easy," Adept Vastriver laughed.

"Him? Take it easy?" Yu Wei laughed as well.

"It is your own fault for not having spirit-beasts." Ninelotus spoke up in Ning's defense.

Adept Vastriver sighed, "Everyone wants good spirit-beasts. If, for example, a Redscale Salamander was willing to submit to me, of course I would accept it. Unfortunately, there's no way I can even get close to that sort of Godbeast; as soon as the mere hint of one appears, supremely powerful clans like the Youngflame clan will immediately capture it. Even your Azure Skysnake, junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning…Azure Skysnakes are extremely skilled at finding treasures and fortuitous legacies. They are extremely rare and hard to find; to take in one as a spirit-beast is quite hard as well."

"Azure Skysnake, come, take me as your master," Northson called out.

"Woody, you blockhead, you think you are worthy of being my master?" Little Qing, coiled around Ning's arm, raised her serpentine head and spoke out in the human tongue, clearly filled with disdain.

"You, you Azure Skysnake, I'm still your master's brother, you know!" Northson stared at him.

"I only acknowledge my master. You? Go sit in the corner somewhere," Little Qing said with tremendous arrogance.

"You…!" Northson, utterly infuriated, was only able to let out a snort. "You know what? I'm not going to squabble with a little snake like you."

He had never been able to win a verbal victory over Little Qing.

Ning, watching this, began to laugh. Actually, the likes of Yu Wei and Adept Vastriver, both reincarnated Immortals, trained at extremely rapid rates. Thus, they generally would not acquire spirit-beasts, because their spirit-beasts wouldn't possibly be able to keep up with them! As for some truly powerful Godbeasts…they weren't so easily acquired.

For example, the Redscale Salamander; everyone wanted them, but they weren't so easily acquired.

Although the Azure Skysnake was a bit weaker in power, it was still extremely talented in seeking out fortuitous legacies and treasures; generally speaking, Immortal cultivators would all be willing to tame one. Unfortunately, they were too rare, and also very skilled in escape.

As for Whitewater Hounds? By comparison, they were actually a bit inferior. Their strengths mainly lay in their intelligence and their comprehensive abilities. Still, to Ning, the Whitewater Hound was his Uncle White, like a parent or an elder in the family. He had also once saved both Ning and Ning's mother, and had always quietly supported Ning in his endeavors.

Still, it had to be said that Uncle White was indeed quite accomplished in the art of formations; he had been the main problem-solver in the Vault of Treasures.

Youngflame Nong rose to his feet. He had already bound the core of this palace, but there wasn't a hint of joy on his face. Ning and the others weren't smiling either.

This was because…they had now completely bound three of the palaces; the Vault of Treasures, the Immortal Grass Palace, and the Dao Soldier Palace. Two more palaces remained…and one was under heavy guard by the Yaksha Dao-soldiers, while the other was under heavy guard by the Seawave Dao-soldiers. If they wanted to enter, they would have to fight. There would be no way to avoid them!

Those terrifying monstrous Dao-soldiers were so powerful that they had beaten even a Fiendgod like Xiangliu Fang into a constant retreat. If Ning and the others were to engage them in battle, they would probably be effortlessly slaughtered!

Compared to Xiangliu Fang, they were in a position of extreme weakness, to say nothing of those Dao-soldiers.

The threat of imminent death…it caused all of them to have ugly looks on their faces.

"Everyone." Youngflame Nong swept Ning and the others with his gaze. "I have the key to the estate, and can open a corridor to leave from any location within this Immortal estate. If we truly encounter a great danger that we simply cannot withstand…I'll lead you all in fleeing this Immortal estate. Don't worry; I'm still confident in my abilities to escape."

"However, everyone, you need to be very careful; I don't wish for any of you to end up being killed by the monsters," Youngflame Nong said.

Ning and the others all understood that there was no way out now.

However, none of them had thought that challenging a Celestial Immortal's estate would be an easy task. Danger was expected and normal. Ning and the others all had their own life-saving measures, none of which had been used yet.

"Very good. Let's head out," Youngflame Nong ordered.

All of the monsters of this Immortal estate world had been divided into two forces. One was the Witchriver clan's Yaksha Dao-soldiers, while the other was the Seawave Dao-soldiers. They were each guarding one of the palaces.

In air, far away, a large warship suddenly appeared. Waves of energy rippled out from it as it cruised forward, flying through the air at high speed and heading directly towards the Seawave Dao-soldiers, led by Immortal Duohe.

"They are coming."

"That Fiendgod and those humans are coming."

"Duohe, it's up to you," Immortal Witchsui sent mentally from far away.

Immortal Duohe had more than twenty thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers under his command. They formed into an incomparably titanic wave that covered the skies, and all of them stared coldly towards the large warship flying towards them.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 16 – The Wildcore

Aboard the warship.

Ji Ning and the others stared at the massive, distant wave, and the savage, sky-filling aura the wave emanated. All of them had heavy feelings in their hearts.

"These monsters…after I bind the Immortal estate, I am going to enslave all of them. All of them!" Youngflame Nong stared at the distant monsters, his face turning savage. He also gritted his teeth, then produced in his hand a queer contraption that was the size of a person's head. Extraordinarily powerful ripples emerged from it.

Ning and the others couldn't help but look at this item.

"A Wildcore?" Mu Northson called out in surprise.

Ning and the others, including Adept Vastriver, Ninelotus, and Xue Hongyi, all had puzzled looks on their faces. Clearly, they had no idea what this was.

"You actually know about Wildcores?" Youngflame Nong nodded. "Right. This is a Wildcore! An Immortal-grade Wildcore."

"But your construct-warship is only at the Heaven-rank. If you put this Immortal-grade Wildcore into this construct-warship, it won't be able to withstand the power. Even if it looks perfectly fine from the outside, the formation diagrams inside it will begin to crumble. Your construct-warship will be doomed." Northson couldn't help but voice his concerns.

"It will be able to hold for a short period of time, the time needed to boil a kettle of tea," Youngflame Nong said calmly. He then immediately pressed the head-sized Wildcore towards the planks of the warship.

Whoosh.

A dark corridor naturally appeared in the floorboards of the warship, and the Wildcore burrowed within.

"For at least that period of time, this warship of mine will be able to reach a level that approaches the Immortal-rank. Perhaps it wouldn't be able to withstand the attacks of Celestial Immortals, but these monstrous Dao-soldiers won't be able to break my warship," Youngflame Nong said in a low voice.

"What's a Wildcore?"

"Junior apprentice-brother, what sort of a thing is this Desolate Heart?"

Ning and the others, puzzled, all sent mental messages to Northson.

Northson was extremely skilled in the Dao of Constructs, and he also understood Wildcores very well. He immediately sent back, "It's quite complicated, but to simplify it…Wildcores are, in reality, meant to be used for Immortal-ranked construct-warships, allowing them to temporarily explode with power. Immortal-ranked construct-warships are able to withstand this sort of sudden increase in power…but Immortal-ranked warships are far more valuable than even ordinary Immortal-ranked magic treasures. Even young master Youngflame most likely doesn't possess this sort of warship."

"Thus, Youngflame Nong is placing his Wildcore into the warship he is using. His warship is actually very good as well; it is Heaven-ranked, and a very precious one. But the power of a Wildcore is simply too great, and this Heaven-ranked construct-warship cannot endure it. Even though its own 'body', being a magic treasure, won't be damaged, the formations and diagrams within it will begin to crumble," Northson said.

Although Ning and the others understood little of this craft, they understood the importance of formation-diagrams.

The formation-diagrams of a construct served as their core; they were what made the constructs work properly! It was precisely because of the existence of formation-diagrams that constructs were able to possess sentience and unleash powerful, precise attacks. Once the formation-diagrams crumbled, the entire construct would be finished.

"One warship, one Wildcore," Youngflame Nong growled. "We have to enter this palace. We have to!"

Ning and the others exchanged glances. They could all sense Youngflame Nong's resolve.

The warship steadily moved forward. Immortal Duohe, in command of more than twenty thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers, stared coldly as it approached.

"Kill.'

"Kill that Fiendgod. Kill those humans."

These monstrous Dao-soldiers were all eager and impatient. However, without Immortal Duohe's order, nobody dared to attack rashly.

Finally…

The seemingly placid and calm warship, that had been advancing at an ordinary speed, suddenly began to glow with an dazzlingly brilliant golden light. Its aura vastly increased, and a golden halo suddenly covered the entire warship as it became criss-crossed with lines of power. It seemed to have transformed into a long awl, shuttling through the air at an incomparably astonishing speed towards the massive, sky-filling Seawave Dao-soldier formation.

It was too fast! The warship's sudden explosion of speed made it move lightning-fast, catching the Seawave Dao-soldiers off-guard.

"Kill!" Immortal Duohe's already-gravelly voice suddenly rang out in the minds of every single Dao-soldier. All of them activated their elemental ki into their Dao-armors, and an enormous, endless amount of elemental ki passed through their armors as more than twenty thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers merged powers.

As for Immortal Duohe, he was the 'head' of this massive Seawave Dao-soldier formation. How to attack and how to defend…it was all up to him.

"Let's go," Immortal Duohe howled. The massive wave came smashing down towards the lightning-face warship. BOOM! The wave heavily struck the warship head-on.

The golden aura surrounding the warship, however, just trembled once, then regained it's perfect stability. However, the collisive power was simply too great, causing the warship to be knocked backwards.

"We can't charge them head-on," Northson shouted hurriedly.

Ning and the others, standing within the warship, were incomparably stable. All of them had solemn looks on their faces, and their raised their heads to stare at the massive wave which came crashing down upon them once again.

"Uncle Fang, go," Youngflame Nong said, gritting his teeth.

"Alright." Xiangliu Fang let out a growling response, and each of his hands became filled with a long awl that emanating an astonishing aura. And then….swoosh! He passed straight through the outer layer of golden light surrounding the warship. The golden light didn't impede him at all, allowing Xiangliu Fang to leave.

"Monsters, f*ck off."

Xiangliu Fang, having transformed into his true form of a three thousand meter tall, nine-headed, serpent-bodied Hydraga, went forward to clash with the massive, sky-filling wave. He began to launch his attack.

By now, his awls were also three thousand meters long. They struck out like the galloping thunder or the dancing lightning, stabbing directly into the wave.

"Puny Fiendgod, don't even think of affecting us." Immortal Duohe's voice boomed out, and the massive, savage wave sent out another surge of power, smashing directly against the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang.

BOOM!

BOOM!

Skin tore open, and flesh split apart. Blood flew everywhere. One of the long awls was knocked flying, while Xiangliu Fang himself was sent hurtling through the air as well. Last time, although he was capable of fighting against Immortal Duohe's monstrous Dao-soldiers, there had only been ten thousand of them. This time, Immortal Duohe had unified all of the other smaller powers, forming a Seawave Dao-soldier formation of more than twenty thousand monsters. The power had increased several times over, causing even Xiangliu Fang to be completely unable to fight back.

"Come." Xiangliu Fang's hands stretched out, transforming into countless giant snakes and latching onto the discarded awl. The injuries on his body rapidly healed, and he once more fearlessly charged forward.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.

The clashes between the Fiendgod and the wave contained enough power to shock the heavens and shake the earth.

Although the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, was in a position of absolute inferiority, he still managed to divert a large part of the power of the Seawave Dao-soldiers. For a moment, the warship, seeming incomparably tiny in the face of this vast wave, was able to once more advance at high speed, seizing the chance to hurtle forwards.

"Detestable." Immortal Duohe was frantic as well. If he had to deal with Xiangliu Fang, it was hard to avoid the warship from advancing through openings in their defense.

He had no idea how this warship could have suddenly grown so powerful; despite the power of the waves and the collisive force of the blows, they still weren't able to force the warship back.

"Zhenbao, you come and lead my tribe," Immortal Duohe sent mentally. "We will divide into two Seawave Dao-soldier formations."

"Yes, Master."

Zhenbao was the disciple which Immortal Duohe trusted the most, and was second only to him in power. He was already a peak Primal, and was extremely powerful.

"Divide!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The massive wave in the air instantly split apart, dividing into two. The Seawave Dao-soldier formation personally commanded by Immortal Duohe, formed from many merged lesser monstrous tribes, went to block the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang. As for the other ten thousand Dao-soldiers, they were led by Daoist Zhenbao to block the warship.

Ning and the others, within the warship, watched as the massive Fiendgod battled with the giant wave. The warship continued to advance forward at high speed.

"Hahaha, it is capable of stopping Uncle Fang, but not me." Youngflame Nong's eyes were filled with madness. "Keep charging. Charge to the edges of the palace, and I'll be able to enter."

Around them were countless waves, but the warship continued to charge forward with inexorable power.

"Eh?!"

The massive wave suddenly split apart, forming into two waves. One completely focused on stopping the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, and completely tied him down. The other, seemingly slightly weaker, was completely focused on guarding against the encroaching warship.

The advance of the warship instantly grew much more difficult.

"They separated?" Youngflame Nong ground his teeth. "Charge, charge, charge! Wildcore, blaze for me!"

BOOM!!!!

The light on the surface of the warship suddenly skyrocketed in luminosity, and its charging power grew even more ferocious. The ten thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers commanded by Daoist Zhenbao were completely capable of suppressing Loose Immortals or Earth Immortals, but in the face of this explosively powerful warship, they actually weren't able to tie it down, and the warship continued to advance.

"Stop it, Zhenbao, stop it, stop it!" Immortal Duohe hurriedly sent a mental message.

"Don't worry, master, leave it to me!" Daoist Zhenbao was going crazy as well. His entire wave suddenly grew even more savage, transforming into a bloody color. As for the warship, it too advanced forward at a berserk speed.

"Faster, faster, faster." Youngflame Nong gritted his teeth.

"Dangerous. This is dangerous. This is way too dangerous." Northson's eyelids were twitching as he watched. He hurriedly sent a mental message to Ning and the others, "Senior fellow disciples, be careful. Youngflame Nong has gone utterly mad. This Heaven-ranked construct-warship was unable to withstand the Wildcore to begin with, and now he's burning its power like mad, causing its power to explode even more in a short period of time. The formation-diagrams within this Heaven-ranked warship can collapse at any moment. Once it does, the warship will be finished, and we'll have to suffer the attacks from these ten thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers head on."

Ning, Yu Wei, Adept Vastriver, and the others all began to feel nervous.

"Charge, charge, charge!" Youngflame Nong's face was completely red, and madness was in his eyes.

"Madman. He's a madman." Xue Hongyi, seeing this, felt panic in his heart. In front of the warship was that terrifying Seawave Dao-soldier formation; it was capable of splitting the skin and rending the flesh of even a Fiendgod like Xiangliu Fang. If the warship was destroyed and the wave slammed against them, it would probably break them all into tiny pieces.

Crack….

Crack crack crack…

Suddenly, the entire warship began to emanate sounds. Its charging speed began to lessen, and the aura of golden light around it began to grow unstable, starting to shudder.

"It's breaking. It's breaking!" Northson immediately called out, "Young master Youngflame!!!"

As for Daoist Zhenbao, who was in command of the ten thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers, he naturally noticed that the speed of the warship he was in charge of dealing with was beginning to lesson, and that the golden light surrounding it was weakening. He immediately was overjoyed, and he bellowed out, "Kill them! Kill them all and seize the key!" Instantly, an even more terrifying wave-crest formed, smashing down viciously towards the warship!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 17 – One Instant, A Thousand Years

Ji Ning, Adept Vastriver, Yu Wei, Ninelotus, Mu Northson, and Xue Hongyi were all incomparably nervous.

As for Yu Wei, a dim spot of light appeared in her forehead.

Ning's elemental ki had already seeped into his storage-type magic treasure. Within it, there was a green leaf that was covered with gray runes, causing it to appear unfathomably mysterious This was one of the two life-saving treasures which Ning had acquired within the underwater estate, the one meant for defense.

"Hm?" Ninelotus clenched her fist as well, and the skin on her arm began to vaguely emanate with white lotus flowers.

All of them were preparing to activate their life-saving treasures at a moment's notice. They stared towards the warship nervously, watching the shuddering, fluctuating golden barrier of light.

BOOM!

A massive, savage wave viciously struck against the barrier of light. The warship flipped over, but then continued to charge forward.

Despite the warship flipping over, Ning and the others all stood firmly on the floor of the warship, as though rooted to it. Their eyes couldn't help but suddenly widen as they all stared at the warship.

Crack crack rack….

A series of shuddering cracks rang out from inside the warship, the golden barrier of light began to dim.

"AAAAARGH! Damn you, damn you, DAMN YOU!" Youngflame Nong let out a throat-rending howl. A rolled paper scroll suddenly appeared within his hand. The scroll seemed quite ordinary; although paper was relatively rare in the Ji clan's territory, in Stillwater City, it was still quite common.

This seemingly ordinary scroll, however, had a single, large character written atop it.

LOCK!

"Lock!" The gazes of Ning and everyone else were completely captivated by the 'lock' character on the paper scroll. It was an extremely simple character, but it emanated with the aura of a vast Dao, far broader and wider than the Dao of Rainwater and the Dao of the Inferno which Ning normally meditated on. In fact, Ning even felt a desire to submit and kowtow towards it.

Rumble!

The 'lock' character atop the scroll suddenly began to glow with light. It emanated a blurry radiance which spread out to the sourrounding area, and the surrounding Seawave Dao-soldiers were caught by it as well.

In this moment…the wind halted. The water halted.

It was as though the world had frozen.

Ning and the others, however, were completely unaffected. All of them couldn't help but feel astonished.

"What, what, what was that?!"

"Wait. Those Seawave Dao-soldiers are still moving, only…they are moving extremely slow." Ning's group immediately realized that the massive, surrounding wave hadn't actually frozen; it was just advancing at an extremely slow pace.

Swoosh!

Without the Seawave Dao-soldiers blocking the way, the warship instantly traversed the final ten kilometers.

"Open!" The ashen-faced Youngflame Nong activated the key, and an illusory palace door instantly appeared in front of him. The warship immediately flew into the illusory gate, and then the gate swung shut.

Whoosh…

As Youngflame Nong and the others entered the illusory gate, the massive wave, which had seemed to be almost frozen in place, suddenly came crashing down.

"How can…how can that have happened?" The leader of the Seawave Dao-soldiers, Daoist Zhenbao, stared in disbelief at the distant, already-shut palace door. "Just now, just then…"

He would never forget that feeling.

He clearly had already unleashed the full power of the Seawave Dao-soldiers, and had been attacking at high speed, but…how could the enemy warship have suddenly increased in speed by ten thousand times or a hundred thousand times? It was precisely because the enemy's speed had suddenly increased by an utterly ridiculous amount that he had been unable to control the wave and unleash an attack. Thus, the enemy had passed straight through his Dao-soldiers and entered the illusory palace gate.

"Master, they…how did they suddenly move so fast? I was completely unable to block them," Daoist Zhenbao sent mentally.

The distant Immortal Duohe, who had been dealing with Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang in the distance, had actually been paying attention to the battle over here as well. After all, the humans aboard the warship were what mattered the most.

Just now, he had been completely stupefied as well.

"It wasn't that they were fast; it was that you were slow," Immortal Duohe sent mentally. "All of the Dao-soldiers, in that instant, seemed to be crawling even slower than a baby turtle."

"How can that be? I didn't feel as though my speed lessened, and none of the Dao-soldiers under my command felt that their speed had lessened," Daoist Zhenbao said frantically.

"That's because…time changed for you. You should have heard the saying, 'a day in the Deva realm, a year in the mortal realms', right? This is because time passes at different rates in the Deva realm and in the mortal realms. Perhaps in the Deva realm, you might only feel as though a day had passed, but in the mortal realm, a year might have passed. This is exactly what happened just now. You felt as though just an instant had passed, but in reality, an extremely long period of time had passed, and the enemy warship flew more than ten kilometers away." A hint of despair was in Immortal Duohe's eyes. "These humans were actually able to produce such a treasure…can it be that the Heavens themselves wish to destroy those of us in this Immortal estate world?"

Daoist Zhenbao now understood as well. So it was time. Time had changed for them.

It was as though an instant had passed for him, but thousands of years had passed for them; when time flowed at completely different rates, what happened just now would occur.

"There's actually a treasure like this…" Daoist Zhenbao murmured to himself.

"Hahaha…you aren't capable of stopping my young master. You aren't capable of it!" The distant Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang, had already begun to flee. As he did so, his laughter echoed out in the heavens.

The Seawave Dao-soldiers were completely unable to catch him with their attacks. When Xiangliu Fang completely focused on running away, they weren't able to catch up to him at all.

"Let's go, all of us." Immortal Duohe had the appearance of a middle-aged man, but in that instant, he seemed to have aged significantly.

Rumble…

The two Seawave Dao-soldier formations reformed into one, and the massive seawave flew at high speed towards the distant.

A short period of time later, the massive Seawave Dao-soldiers reunited with the Yaksha Dao-soldiers.

"You actually failed? Failed?!" Immortal Witchsui sent a mental message over, and the other members of the Witchriver clan looked at them as well.

"Failed." Immortal Duohe said hoarsely, "These humans actually held an inconceivably powerful treasure." Earlier, the two sides had been separated by ten thousand kilometers, and so the Witchriver clan hadn't been able to clearly watch the exchange of battle.

"What sort of treasure was it, for it to be able to break through your defense?" Immortal Witchsui asked.

"A treasure capable of affecting time itself," Immortal Duohe said, shaking his head.

"Time?" Immortal Witchsui was shocked as well. He was, after all, of the Witchriver clan; he knew some secrets. Generally speaking, it was fairly common for Celestial Immortals to encounter treasures that affected time itself. For Celestial Immortals, it was a common type of attack. But it was rare for even even one out of ten thousand Earth Immortals to become a Celestial Immortal…

Treasures capable of influencing the flow of time, to Loose Immortals, were incomparably powerful. The Loose Immortals and Earth Immortals of the outside world might have witnessed such treasures before, but these two Loose Immortals of the Immortal estate world had only heard of them.

"Don't worry," Immortal Witchsui sent mentally. "It is already incredible that the human had even one such treasure. I refuse to believe he has a second one." Immortal Duohe nodded as well.

"Duohe, we have no way out now. This is the last palace. We have to guard it! This is our last chance to acquire the key to the Immortal estate," Immortal Witchsui said. "The dream which those of us within the Immortal estate have held for countless generations…this is our very last chance."

"Not just our last chance at leaving," Immortal Duohe said hoarsely. "Our last chance at survival as well."

"Survival?" Immortal Witchsui was startled…and then, his face turned completely pale.

"Someone capable of having a treasure like this, and having a Fiendgod serve as a guard…these humans definitely have an extraordinary background." Immortal Duohe's voice echoed out in the minds of every single Dao-soldier. He slowly said something which caused terror in every single monstrous Dao-soldier's heart. "After he completely binds this final palace, then he will be in complete control fo the entire Immortal estate. By then, he can do whatever he wants to us; everything will be under his control. He can also summon an army from the outside world, or he can also destroy the environment of this Immortal estate world, causing our descendants to not even have anything to eat or drink, starving them to death. In short…if he binds this Immortal estate, he will have countless tools at his disposal."

All of the monsters were terrified. Right. If the enemy was to control the Immortal estate, he could launch sneak attacks from anywhere in the estate. If he were to toss out some powerful, deadly poisons…

It would be too simple to destroy an area of mere tens of thousands of kilometers. Some terrifyingly powerful poisons were capable of causing an area of tens of thousands of kilometers to be completely poisoned, where not even a blade of grass would grow.

Creation was hard. Destruction was easy. After destroying the environment of this Immortal world, a few tens of thousands of years later, most likely almost no one would be left alive within it.

"This is our last hope."

"This is our last chance."

"We have to fight."

"We have to seize the key to the Immortal estate."

"Even if all of us die, we cannot let them bind this final palace!!!" Immortal Duohe's voice rang out in the skies.

"Fight."

"Fight!"

"FIGHT!"

All of the monsters howled in anger. All of them brimmed with eagerness for battle. This was no longer a battle for freedom; it was a true battle for survival!

Within an ancient palace.

The warship had charged in, and as soon as it did, the golden glow around it completely vanished. The mysterious, powerful aura that had previously permeated the warship was completely gone; it seemed completely inert and lifeless.

"The formation-diagrams finally collapsed." Northson shook his head. "Towards the end, the warship was just flying forward on momentum. A Heaven-ranked construct-warship, just like that, was destroyed."

"The Heaven-ranked construct-warship was nothing." Adept Vastriver shook his head, gesturing with his eyes. "Take a look at young master Youngflame."

Ning and the others had noticed as well. Youngflame Nong was currently clutching that paper scroll, staring fixedly at the 'lock' character atop it. Alas, the 'lock' character now seemed completely ordinary. There was nothing special about it at all.

"One Instant, A Thousand Years," Yu Wei said softly. "This sort of treasure, when used, can virtually guarantee the death of a Loose Immortal. Although this sort of treasure isn't Immortal-ranked, it isn't too far from it in value."

Ning and the others were puzzled. The nearby Ninelotus, seeing the look on Ning's face, sent mentally to him, "One Instant, A Thousand Years – this name symbolizes the ability of this sort of treasure to affect the rate of time. For you, it might feel as though an instant had passed, but for the enemy, more than a thousand years would have passed. But of course, that's only an extremely, overly extravagant description. In short, when the rate of time is flowing at very different speeds, a Primal Daoist is capable of killing a Loose Immortal. From this, you can tell how precious this treasure is."

Ning understood.

Originally, when he had been received the [Starseizing Hand] transmission in the transmission space of the underwater estate, he had spent months within, but time in the outside world had barely moved. This was indeed far more incredible than a mere scroll.

"Damn. Damn." Youngflame Nong stared at the scroll in his hand, grinding his teeth.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 18 – The Dao Repository of the Ji Clan

"Judging from the look on young master Youngflame's face, he must be about to go crazy from grief." Mu Northson's mental voice had a hint of schadenfreude to it. This exalted young master had taken one one powerful treasure after another. How could Ji Ning, Northson, Xue Hongyi, and the others not feel powerless before them?

They all understood that they were nothing more than geniuses of Stillwater Commandery…while the man before them was very likely going to be the next Godplume Duke! Someone who was even more exalted than the Marquis of Stillwater!

Even though he was just the heir to the position, the treasures he possessed were enough to cause Ning and the others to constantly sigh in amazement.

"The monsters of this Immortal estate…I won't spare any of them." Youngflame Nong ground his teeth. To charge into this fourth palace, he had to use up his Heaven-ranked construct-warship, a Wildcore, and his 'Lock' scroll; psychologically, he had been completely unprepared to have to use up all three treasures. And this was just the fourth palace; by now the Seawave Dao-soldiers and the Yaksha Dao-soldiers had surely assembled outside the fifth and final palace. The cost for them to enter that fifth palace would definitely be incomparably astonishing. Just thinking about it made young master Youngflame feel miserable.

"I am definitely going to enslave them all, then sell them offer to various tribes. Their descendants will forever be slaves," Youngflame Nong said with a hate-filled voice.

"Young master Youngflame." Xue Hongyi spoke out softly.

"Yes?" Young master Youngflame looked at him. "What is it?"

Xue Hongyi immediately smiled and said, "Young master, are you worrying about entering the fifth palace? As I see it, actually, there's no need to fight head-on against them. These monsters just want to leave this Immortal estate world, right? Young master, you can promise to let them leave. I imagine that these monsters would be willing to accept. Each of you can set an oath to the Dao of the Heavens, which they wouldn't dare violate. In this way, young master, you would be able to enter the fifth palace without using up any treasures. What do you think, young master?"

Xue Hongyi thought that his idea was a good one.

Young master Youngflame gave him a cold glance. Between grinding teeth, he spoke out two words: "You imbecile!"

"Young…" Xue Hongyi's face instantly turned red.

Being a genius of cultivation didn't necessarily mean that one was intelligent in handling worldly affairs. Still, Xue Hongyi was still quite intelligent; upon being rebuked as young master Youngflame as an 'imbecile', although he felt incredibly insulted, he then immediately understood what Youngflame Nong was thinking.

Ninelotus, standing next to Ning, sent a mental laugh to him. "This Xue Hongyi really is an imbecile. Since young master Youngflame has elected to come to this estate, he most likely has already prepared for all contingenices. As far as he is concerned, if he can bind this estate, then all of the monsters within can be toyed with as he pleases; they wouldn't even be able to escape. Tens of thousands of monster-slaves, and all of which are Dao-soldiers as well! There are even precious Yaksha Dao-soldiers here…only Celestial Immortals could afford to be so extravagant. Once he offers these Dao-soldiers to his clan, not only will he be able to make up for his losses, he will be rewarded richly! To negotiate with the monsters and to let them leave…isn't this the same as letting an enormous fortune just walk away?"

Ning nodded his head. The vast number of Seawave Dao-armors and Yaksha Dao-armors alone was an inestimable fortune.

"This palace actually doesn't even have a single golem within, nor are there any attacking formations." Youngflame Nong no longer focused on his losses, instead carefully inspecting the palace.

"Hmph." He suddenly waved his hand, and a bubbling, boiling black strand of elemental ki spread out in every direction, striking against the walls of the palace. Rumble, rumble, rumble. The palace walls were incomparably sturdy, but under the assault of the elemental ki, three words suddenly appeared on the palace wall in front of them: DAO REPOSITORY PALACE.

"Dao Repository Palace?" The eyes of Ning and everyone else lit up.

Every single power needed to build a Dao Repository. Even the Ji clan of West Prefecture City had its own vault that was used for hiding sutras and scripts for its descendants to learn from. The Black-White College had its own Dao Repository as well. Immortal Witchriver had his own forces; although his roots weren't as deep and his history wasn't as old as the Black-White College, he vastly surpassed the likes of Snowdragon Mountain.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Without even waiting for Youngflame Nong to say anything, Ning and the others transformed into streaks of light, charging towards a corridor right next to the three characters, 'DAO REPOSITORY PALACE'. The reason they all charged towards this corridor was because this was the only corridor there was.

"These guys…" With a swooshing sound, Youngflame Nong charged forward as well.

Upon charging into the corridor, what greeted them was a massive, vast hall. The insides of this hall were filled with countless books, a veritable sea of them, most likely not much smaller than the Dao Repository of the Black-White College.

"Quick, take them."

"Quick."

All of them seemed to have been possessed.

Every single power cared deeply about its techniques and secret arts. If they were to find any which the Black-White College was not in possession of and offer it to them, they would be able to acquire enormous sums of black-white pellets.

"Whoosh." Ning waved his hand, and a large number of books in front of him were immediately collected in into his storage-type magic treasure.

As for the Azure Skysnake, she blinked from place to place, calling out in celebration, "C'mere, all of ya!" The books beneath her all vanished.

"Come." The Whitewater Hound collected the books before him as well.

"Take them."

"These are mine."

Xue Hongyi had gone crazy as well. Everyone, including the final person to enter, Youngflame Nong, began to quickly collect the books.

Although this giant hall had a massive number of books, in just a few moments, the entire hall had been completely emptied out. In the end, they didn't even spare the shelves used to carry the books.

"Look at how crazy all of you have gotten." Youngflame Nong shook his head. "I hope these aren't just the abridged versions. All of you will be stupefied if they are."

Ning and the others knew this as well. It was very likely that the books here were simple abridged versions…but no one wanted to take the risk that they weren't. After all, it would take some time to ascertain if a book was an abridged version or not, and in the time it took, everyone else would have seized all the other books.

"Let's take a look." Ning and the others started to take out one book after another, perusing through them carefully. Moments later…

"Abridged."

"This one is abridged; it just has the very first part of the technique."

"This is abridged."

"This one is also abridged."

"This one isn't abridged, it is complete, but it is actually the most commonly seen formation technique."

All of them were instantly downfallen; nearly ninety percent of the books were abridged, and as for the complete versions? They were commonly known commodies; in the Black-White College, one didn't even have to use black-white pellets to trade for them. Almost all larger schools had them.

The books with more valuable techniques, secret arts, and divine abilities…were all abridged.

"Almost all of these are abridged," Ning mused to himself. "But there should definitely a place where the full versions are located. The full versions should be located in a more hidden area. I refuse to believe that Immortal Witchriver carried all of those books with him. Can it be that his clansmen wouldn't need to train while he was wandering and adventuring?"

Swoosh1 Ning immediately scurried towards one of the four corridors leading away from the massive hall.

It wasn't just Ning who had come to this conclusion; the others had as well. There had to be complete versions somewhere! And that place was most likely hidden.

Swoosh. Youngflame Nong, by relying on the affinity from the key to the estate, moved into one corridor, quickly discovering a private room.

"Here it is." Youngflame Nong entered the room, immediately seeing the skeleton within it.

This skeleton was the guardian of the Dao Repository Palace!

"In you go." Youngflame Nong collected the skeleton, and then turned his gaze towards a stone book. His key was telling him…that this stone book was the core for the entire Dao Repository Palace.

"Bind." Youngflame Nong just bound a small part of it, then came to a halt. He only needed to bind a small part of it to ensure that all of the formations and restrictive spells within the Dao Repository Palace would be deactivated.

And then, Youngflame Nong quickly left the room, beginning to search as well. If he were to locate a powerful divine ability or secret art which the Youngflame clan didn't already possess, he would be rendering a major merit. However, given how ancient and powerful the Youngflame clan was…it was very, very hard to discover secret arts or divine abilities they didn't already have.

Ning's divine sense had been activated long ago, filling every single part of the hall he was in. However, since the walls of the Immortal estate blocked out divine sense, he wasn't able to search deeper.

"Ning, son, quick, come over here!" Uncle White suddenly sent him a mental message.

Ning, just about to push open a stone door and investigate, suddenly came to a halt. He transformed into a streak of light, hurrying towards Uncle White's direction. Just a few seconds later, he entered a private room.

Within the private room, there were rows of books, all of which were protected by restrictive spells. However, these restrictive spells were all inactive, and the Whitewater Hound, Xue Hongyi, and Adept Vastriver were frantically seizing them.'

"Quick."

Ning had no time to waste. He began to frantically start collecting books. Actually, as soon as he entered the room and saw the books and bookshelves, Ning felt quite certain that they should all be complete versions. This was because generally speaking, complete versions of techniques would span up to ten full volumes. Abridged versions, in turn, might take up just a thin book.

"…and this. And this!" Ning was frantically collecting books.

A short while later, the entire room was completely empty. The final person to arrive, young master Youngflame, was only able to collect a few books.

"These are all full versions." Ning and the others began to look through the books they had acquired.

"Eh? Just Earth-ranked techniques?"

"This one is Mortal-ranked?"

"These 'secret arts' are too ordinary." Ning and the others began to frown as they looked. They were all geniuses, and in the Black-White College, they chose from Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques. However, the books they had found here were all Mortal-ranked and Earth-ranked techniques and secret arts. Although the books were extremely numerous, there wasn't even a single Heaven-ranked technique.

"My Youngflame clan has plenty of this sort of crap. There isn't even a single useful book here." Youngflame Nong furrowed his brows, shaking his head.

Ning, however, just laughed. Right. These books were useless to him, but they would be very useful to the Ji clan. The Ji clan had far, far too few techniques and secret arts, and those they had, he had purchased from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. But how many could he possibly buy, on his own? To accumulate a large number of secret arts and techniques, generally speaking, the only way was annihilate another large clan and seize their books.

"More than a million techniques and secret arts. Although they aren't that good, they are enough for Xiantian lifeforms and Zifu Disciples to use," Ning mused to himself. "In the future, after I find some top-tier Ki Refining techniques, my Ji clan will be able to set up a Dao Repository of its own to pass down to later generations."

Dao Repositories were the heart of any tribe, sect, or school. Each generation relied on their Dao Repositories to grow strong.

"Immortal Witchriver was a Celestial Immortal; he definitely must have more powerful techniques and divine abilities. But where are they?" Youngflame Nong frowned.

"The most powerful techniques and divine abilities must be stored in extremely well-hidden places. They might not even be in this Dao Repository Palace."

Ning and the others just pondered briefly, and then…swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! They all scattered in different directions, searching for treasures. Although this Dao Repository Vault didn't necessarily have any top-tier techniques, secret arts, or divine abilities, perhaps it did!

Swoosh.

Youngflame Nong once more returned to that earlier room. He sat down in the lotus position in front of the stone book, beginning to once more bind the core of this Dao Repository Palace.

"Once I bind it, I'll be in complete control of this entire Dao Repository Palace. No matter how well-hidden a room is, I'll know about it," Youngflame Nong mused to himself. "I need roughly two hours to bind it. Given how well-hidden the top-tier secret arts and divine abilities must be, they might not be able to find them within two hours."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 19 – Pentabolt Vajra, Soldiers of the Mind

"The top-tier techniques, divine abilities, and secrets arts. They are going to be mine, all mine!" Xue Hongyi was rapidly checking one room after another, his eyes filled with an endless frenzy. He came from Snowdragon Mountain, which currently didn't even have a single Loose Immortal; even if it did occasionally produce a Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal throughout its long history, there was no way those figures could compare to a Celestial Immortal like Immortal Witchriver.

The divine abilities and secret arts left behind by a Celestial Immortal would definitely be extraordinary.

When one's level of power was very close to another's, the deciding factor were divine abilities and secret arts. This was especially true for geniuses.

"This is a chance. A tremendous chance. I have to find it. With powerful secret arts, in this life, I might be able to overcome the Celestial tribulation." Adept Vastriver was filled with endless desire as well.

Everyone was searching. Ji Ning, the Whitewater Hound, and Little Qing had separated as well.

"Where is it? Where could it be?" A little azure serpent was slithering forward like a streak of light, occasionally disappearing into thin air and reappearing somewhere else, and at other times moving directly into a room without even pushing the stone door open.

"For me, finding fortunes is as easy as eating rice, but in this Immortal estate, I've gotten fewer treasures than even Uncle White." The Azure Skysnake used her Void Blink technique repeatedly, and even blinked from one end of a hallway to the other to save time, or directly into rooms. She wildly teleported about with abandon, trying to find something.

Whoosh.

Yet another Void Blink. The Azure Skysnake appeared within a new room. "Nothing here eith…" The Azure Skysnake suddenly came to a halt. "Eeee?"

The Azure Skysnake looked about this room in surprise. This was a very ordinary room. It wasn't very large, and it only held two bookcases and a single table. The bookcase was covered with a few books, while the number of books on the table was even more pitifully low. The total number of books in this entire room was very low.

"That's all?"

It must be understood that training tomes for Immortal cultivators were extremely massive and complicated; a single set might comprise of dozens of books. For example, when Ji Ning had received the transmission of the [Starseizing Hand] divine ability, it had been directly transferred to his soul, and had taken several months. From this, one could tell how massive the amount of information was.

The Azure Skysnake couldn't help but transform into an azure-robed maiden. She lowered her head to glance at the books, and as she did, her gaze narrowed.

"Master, master, quick, come quick!!!" Little Qing hurriedly shouted through their spirit-link.

"Wha..? Coming!"

Ji Ning, located in another region, spread out his divine sense, searching through the various corridors. Given that he could mentally sense where Little Qing was located, he quickly found a route to her. As he did, he felt extremely surprised. "Little Qing actually ran to this place? This place really is rather unassuming and out of the way. How long would it have taken to find such a tiny little study?"

Swoosh!

Ning immediately transformed into a streak of smoke, rapidly advancing forward and soon arriving outside the room. He pushed the door open.

"What is it?" Upon entering, Ning saw that the room was completely empty. There was nothing there, aside from Little Qing, who stood there.

"I collected it all," Little Qing said excitedly. "I didn't dare leave them here, for fear that others might take them."

"What techniques did you discover? Why are you so careful?" Ning began to grow excited as well.

Little Qing said in a lowered whisper, "Six types of Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques, totaling more than three hundred volumes. Three types of divine abilities, totalling more than a hundred volumes. One divine will technique, totaling six volumes. All of them are complete!"

Ning's eyes instantly turned completely round.

Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques?

Divine abilities?

A divine will technique?

This…this was truly, truly priceless. Even in the Black-White College, it would number amongst their top-tier materials.

"This room was actually filled with Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques, divine abilities, and divine will techniques." Ning quickly understood. "Previously, we only discovered Mortal-ranked and Earth-ranked techniques and what not…I imagine that another room was used to store Heaven-ranked techniques and arts."

Mortal, Earth, Heaven, Immortal – the higher the rank was, the more precious the technique was. Now that he had acquired the Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques, divine abilities, and a divine will technique, Ning was no longer too interested in those Heaven-ranked techniques and arts. It'd be nice if he could get them, but it wouldn't matter if he didn't.

"Master, they are all over here." Little Qing waved her hand, and a pile of books instantly appeared in front of her.

Ning was so terrified that he instantly waved his hand, collecting them into his own storage-type magic treasure. He actually began to sweat from fear. "How could you just take them out?!"

"It's better to leave them with you. I'm not a Fiendgod Body Refiner; those divine abilities are useless to me. I already have top-tier Ki Refining techniques of my own as well. Right…later, I'll give that divine will technique a try," Little Qing instructed.

"Right." Ning nodded. He immediately sent his divine sense into his storage treasure, beginning to investigate.

There were only a few hundred tomes present; in total, there were ten complete sets! Six sets of Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques! Three sets of divine abilities! One divine will technique!

"These Immortal-ranked Ki Refining techniques are useless to me. The divine abilities?" Ning swept them with his divine sense. "[Heavenly Transformation, [Three Heads, Six Arms, and [Pentabolt Vajra]." This caused Ning to feel delighted.

[Heavenly Transformation] was a commonly seen divine ability, which virtually all larger schools and sects possessed.

[Three Heads, Six Arms] was in the possession of the Black-White College, but it could be considered quite a precious divine ability. Ning had yet to train in it, primarily because he didn't have enough black-white pellets yet. Now, however, he had acquired it, and a complete set at that!

"This ability, [Three Heads, Six Arms]…when executed, it will allow me to grow four more arms that are identical to real arms." Ning was extremely excited. Actually, at the Void level, powerful Fiendgod Body Refiners were capable of transforming a single strand of hair into a clone, and could completely change their physical appearance. It would be extremely easy to even generate eighteen new arms, but that would just be a superficial change; those wouldn't be true arms.

The reason why [Three Heads, Six Arms] was so powerful was because the heads and arms it generated were absolutely real, allowing one's power to truly rise exponentially! Ning could execute the [Starseizing Hand] divine ability with two arms, but once he used the [Three Heads, Six Arms] technique, all six arms would be able to use the [Starseizing Hand]…this was why Ning had always deeply desire to acquire this technique.

"I didn't acquire it at the Black-White College, but I acquired it here." Ning was absolutely overjoyed. "The [Three Heads, Six Arms] technique, when synergized with my [Starseizing Hand]…the power will definitely be exponentially greater."

"[Pentabolt Vajra]?" Ning, with a thought, made a book appear in his hand. It was the first volume of the [Pentabolt Vajra]. He began to flip through it…

The [Pentabolt Vajra] was a divine ability which only a true Fiendgod, or perhaps a Fiendgod Body Refiner who was very close to being a true Fiendgod, was capable of learning.

"Fortunately, I trained in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]." Ning let out a secret sigh of relief. Previously, when he had been at the local Raindragon Guard branch, Ning had discovered that some supreme, top-tier divine abilities had extremely high requirements for Fiendgod Body Refiners. Some actually stated outright that only someone who trained in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] or someone who was a true Fiendgod could train in them.

That Immortal of the Raindragon Guard had also told Ning…that once he passed the trials of the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, he would soon come to learn how truly powerful the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] was.

The reason the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] was so mighty was because it allowed the user to train in some truly top-tier divine abilities, including some which generally only Fiendgods were able to use.

"[Pentabolt Vajra]…to bathe in thunder and lightning and form a vajra-like body. Only after five baptisms by five types of lightning can one be said to have mastered it. But the fifth one actually requires one to be at the Empyrean God level before training in it?" Ning was secretly shocked.

It was the same as the [Starseizing Hand, which was divided into the Six Cycles. The [Pentabolt Vajra] was divided into five levels; the highest level was only trainable by Empyrean Gods. Only at that level could this divine ability be truly perfected to a supreme level.

"This is the simplified version of the legendary divine ability, [Golden Nirmana Body]?" 1 Ning, upon seeing this, nodded in understanding. The very first tome said it plainly; this divine ability's creator had developed it as a simplified version of the [Golden Nirmana Body, to be left to his descendants.

The [Golden Nirmana Body]…it was a legendary divine ability that was one of the top divine abilities of the entire Three Realms. From the notes in this tome, at least, the [Golden Nirmana Body] was one of the absolute best divine abilities. Ning hypothesized that it should be on the same general level as his own [Starseizing Hand].

"I wonder which major power simplified the [Golden Nirmana Body] into this [Pentabolt Vajra," Ning mused to himself. "To be able to simplify it…this major power must be incredible."

Ning waved his hand, collecting the divine ability book, then took out the divine will technique. There was only one of them, and it was titled [Soldiers of the Mind].

"Soldiers of the Mind?" Ning had just begun to flip through it, but he suddenly frowned, then hurriedly sent through their spirit-link, "Little Qing, hurry up and leave."

Swoosh. Little Qing instantly disappeared into thin air.

BOOM. The stone door was pushed open, and Xue Hongyi charged in.

"You?!" Xue Hongyi stared in astonishment towards Ning.

"What a coincidence." Ning glanced at Xue Hongyi, then paid him no attention, immediately flying out from the stone door that had just been opened.

Xue Hongyi frowned as he studied the room. It was completely empty, with nothing within. He hesitated a moment, then shook his head. "Nah…no way…" He then turned and left, continuing the search.

Each of the rooms within the Dao Repository Palace were hidden quite well. Ning continued to frantically search through them in a seemingly crazed manner. He didn't want others to know that he had already acquired top-tier Ki Refining techniques, divine abilities, and a divine will technique. It must be understood that the Yuchi clan had suffered annihilation, simply because they had been discovered to be in possession of a single divine ability, the [Windwing Evasion].

Thus, it was best not to casually reveal such things.

"Whew."

Youngflame Nong gave the stone book in front of him a glance. He had already completely refined the core to this Dao Repository Palace, and everything within it was now under his control.

"Eh?" He closed his eyes, sensing everything in the palace. "Nothing? There is actually nothing?"

His senses were telling him that the entire Dao Repository Palace didn't have a single book within it. It was completely empty.

Another hour passed. Ning and the others had just reunited with Youngflame Nong at the outermost hall.

"We're all here. Did you find any divine abilities or secret arts?" Youngflame Nong laughed as he looked at them.

"Nothing."

"Nothing."

They all shook their heads. Ning, too, shook his head. "Nothing."

"The Rainbowflame Fairy and Adept Vastriver were fairly lucky; they discovered those Heaven-ranked techniques," Xue Hongyi spoke out. "But…there should be Immortal-ranked techniques, divine abilities, and secret arts. We didn't find them anywhere."

"Can it be that those things were too valuable, and so they weren't placed in the Dao Repository Vault, and were instead hidden somewhere else?" Northson said.

"Hm, that's possible," Ning nodded.

1. It is indeed Nirmana, not Nirvana. This bit actually took me nearly half an hour to research and completely comprehend. The actual term in Chinese was '丈六金身', literally 'Zhang Six Golden Body'. Zhang is a term referring to 3.3 meters, so this would literally mean '20 Meter Golden Body'. I did some research, and the phrase 丈六金身 refers to one of the manifestations of Buddha's corporeal/created body. In Buddhism, the Lord Buddha has three bodies (Trikaya); the Dharmakaya (Truth body), the Niramanakaya (the created/corporeal body), and the Sambhogakaya (I'm not even sure how to translate this one). Since this 20 Meter Golden Body was basically one of the manifestations of the Nirmanakaya/Nirmana Body, I decided to translate this as Golden Nirmana Body.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 20 – The Final Palace

Youngflame Nong gave the group of Wanxiang Adepts a look. He mused to himself, "Perhaps they aren't in the Dao Repository Palace…or perhaps one of them has them. Still, Immortal Witchriver was merely a Diremonster Immortal; his roots weren't that deep. Even if he had some divine abilities or techniques, the Youngflame clan probably has them as well. And they are still very useful to me…"

"Everyone, since we have finished our investigations, then let us head to the final palace," Youngflame Nong said.

"Right."

Ning and the others immediately began to grow nervous.

"Let's go!" Youngflame Nong took out yet another magic treasure, a flying weaver's shuttle. The flying shuttle expanded to thirty meters long and ten meters wide. Ning and the others entered it, which was quite roomy.

Swish! The flying shuttle immediately exited the Dao Repository Palace. As they emerged, the Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang was already waiting for them.

"Young master." Xiangliu Fang transformed into a streak of light, flying towards the shuttle

Youngflame Nong smiled and nodded towards Xiangliu Fang, seeming somewhat relaxed. But then, he turned his head to stare at the final golden Skypillar of light, and the many monstrous Dao-soldiers guarding it. He snorted coldly, "These monstrous Dao-soldiers have blocked me repeatedly. After I bind this Immortal estate, I am definitely going to repay them for their actions!"

"How could the monsters of a puny little Immortal estate possibly withstand the Youngflame clan?" Xiangliu Fang laughed as well, and Youngflame Nong nodded.

Ning and the others were secretly surprised…why was it that Youngflame Nong didn't seem to be the slightest bit worried?

"So many monstrous Dao-soldiers…" Ning mused to himself, "The Seawave Dao-soldiers and the Yaksha Dao-soldiers are all far more powerful than ordinary Loose Immortals; even Xiangliu Fang was dominated. What sort of treasure does this Youngflame Nong have?"

"Senior apprentice-brother, he seems quite confident," Northson said with a smirk.

"Let's watch and see," Ning sent back.

As the flying shuttle continued to fly forward, constantly advancing towards that distant golden Skypillar of light and the Seawave Dao-soldiers and the Yaksha Dao-soldier formations surrounding it. They were now quite close.

"Humans!" A deep voice shook the heavens.

Youngflame Nong just laughed icily, while next to him, Xiangliu Fang spoke out on his behalf. "What is it?"

"Actually, there is no need for you to fight with us, the monstrous races of the Immortal estate world. So long as you are willing to open up a corridor out with your key and let us leave to the world of the Grand Xia Empire, then we are willing to permit you to enter this final palace," the deep voice said. Immortal Duohe and Immortal Witchsui both felt that, given these humans still dared to advance in the face of so many monstrous Dao-soldiers, that they probably felt confident in passing through them. Thus, Immortal Duohe and Imimortal Witchsui quickly came to the decision of negotiating with these humans.

"Let you leave? That's not impossible." Youngflame Nong revealed a smile. "But I have a requirement."

"Oh? Speak. What requirement." The deep voice echoed forth once more.

"Simple. Hand over all of your Dao-armors, and I'll let you leave." Youngflame Nong's voice also echoed out in the skies.

"All of our Dao-armors?"

"Impossible."

"Kill this human."

"In his dreams!"

All sorts of ferocious howls rang out.

These Dao-armors had been left behind by Immortal Witchriver, and were the reason why these monsters were so powerful.

"Without the Dao-armors, we would be like a pile of loose sand; we wouldn't even be able to defeat that Fiendgod by your side. In fact, we'd probably be beaten by him instead," the deep voice thundered angrily.

"I can swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens that if you are willing to hand over all of your Dao-armors, that I will let you leave and will not pursue or kill you," Youngflame Nong said.

The Dao-armors interested Youngflame Nong the most; if he could obtain them easily, then he wouldn't mind letting the wielders of them leave.

"Impossible!" The deep voice bellowed angrily.

"Then don't blame me for this," Youngflame Nong shook his head.

"You are forcing us!" The deep voice snarled.

"Right. So what if I am?" Youngflame Nong snickered.

These powerful monsters were bloodthirsty to begin with. Given how excessive Youngflame Nong had behaved, they were now truly angered.

"Kill."

"Kill."

"Kill."

An enormous, sky-filling wave arose, blotting out the heavens and smashing down towards the flying shuttle which Ning and Youngflame Nong were riding. The flying shuttle, however, went directly towards the giant wave with incredible agility.

"This is the moment." A long time ago, Youngflame Nong had produced a queer-looking disc in his hand, which was a mixture of black and white in color.

"POLARIS STARSHIFTER!"

Youngflame Nong let out an angry roar.

Rumble…

This black and white bi-colored disc floated into the air. A ray of black light enveloped the entire flying shuttle, while a ray of white light shot directly towards part of the distant Yaksha Dao-soldiers.

Whoosh!

Space instantly distorted.

That portion of the distant Yaksha Dao-soldiers instantly disappeared, then appeared in the location where the shuttle had been. As for the flying shuttle, it appeared in the location where those Yaksha Dao-soldiers had been.

"Open." As soon as the shuttle appeared, a corridor into the palace appeared. Swoosh! The long shuttle flew directly into the tunnel, and then the gate shut behind it.

"This…"

Immortal Duohe and Immortal Witchsui were completely stunned. All of the Dao-soldiers were stunned. Then stared stupidly at the bi-colored black and white disc. As the energies of the disc were used up, it silently, soundlessly shattered.

"They entered?"

"They entered, just like that?" Immortal Duohe and Immortal Witchsui, as well as all the other monsters, had looks of disbelief, anger, and despair in their eyes.

"It shouldn't have been like this. It shouldn't have…" Immortal Duohe's eyes were filled with boundless rage. Raising his head, he let out an earth-rending, pained, agonized roar.

They had lost. Utterly lost.

If this had been an actual battle, teleporting away a small part of their Dao-soldiers would have only been a minor matter. But this wasn't an actual battle; the enemy, upon teleporting those soldiers away, had immediately been able to enter the final palace.

"After this, the Immortal estate will be bound. After this, all of us will be under his control." Immortal Witchsui was mumbling to himself.

In this moment, the countless monstrous Dao-soldiers were all howling in anger, grief, and despair…

Swoosh.

A long shuttle appeared within the hall, with Youngflame Nong, Xiangliu Fang, Ji Ning, and the others within it. They all emerged from within.

"Hahaha." Youngflame Nong, upon entering, began to laugh joyfully. "We've finally arrived at the final palace. Mmm, and it is quite beautiful as well, far more so than those other four palaces."

Ning and the others were still feeling shocked by what had happened with that bi-colored disc. It had actually caused them to completely swap positions with the distant enemy Dao-soldiers. What treasure was that? Ning, at least, had never even heard of such a treasure.

"It really is much more beautiful. Every single pillar is exquisitely, intricately carved," Xue Hongyi said quickly.

"The final palace. After binding it, the entire Immortal estate will be under my control, and the trial the clan gave me will have been concluded. I'll have earned an Immortal estate as well." Youngflame Nong was quite delighted, but then he let out a sigh. "What a pity, though…after entering this Immortal estate, I lost two of my three most powerful treasures."

"Treasures are meant to be used. After you master the Immortal estate, you'll acquire even better treasures, young master," Xiangliu Fang said.

"I hope so." Youngflame Nong still felt a bit of pain in his heart. The 'Lock' scroll and the Polaris Starshifter disc were two of the most powerful magic treasures he had on him. These were treasures which even many Loose Immortals didn't have access to; even if one had large amounts of liquefied elemental essence, it would be difficult to purchase them. After all, they were simply too rare. Youngflame Nong had only managed to acquire them after many years of collecting resources. Still, for the sake of solidifying his status as the next Godplume Duke, he had no other choices.

"Acquiring the Immortal estate will mean that I'll have recouped my costs, and earned a little on top of it. Those monsters…hmph. They should make their preparations for all of their descendants to forever be slaves." A cold light flashed through Youngflame Nong's eyes. "And that Xue Hongyi…I need to acquire his Immortal-ranked magic treasure as well."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 21 – Preparing a Celebratory Feast

This impressive group of experts filed in through a corridor, arriving at a massive, towering hall. The hall was lined with seats, and the walls were lined with musical instruments.

"This must have been the place where, when Immortal Witchriver was alive, he would merrymake with his monstrous clansmen," Youngflame Nong laughed loudly. "These tables, these pillars, and these sculptures…all of them are utterly exquisite and extraordinary."

Ning and the others all nodded. They could completely imagine how, countless years ago, the Diremonsters would all be seated next to those tables, eating and drinking and making merry.

"And there. That's the place where Immortal Witchriver must have sat." Youngflame Nong pointed towards the front of the hall. The front of the hall had the most beautiful, lavish table of all, and decorative screen behind it was also exquisite. To each side of the decorative screens, there were bronze lamps.

"That bronze lamp was the core of this Witchriver Palace," Youngflame Nong said, pointing towards a Zifu Disciple. "Go next to that bronze lamp."

"Yes."

These Zifu Disciples were all Deathsworn. They knew very well that they had been trained, solely for the purpose of obeying their master. If their master was to order them to their deaths, they wouldn't hesitate at all.

As soon as the Zifu Disciple moved to walk towards the front of the hall…

BOOM!

The entire hall instantly began to change in appearance. Ning and the others watched as the scenery around them transformed into a beautiful peach tree garden. They were surrounded by peach trees, and the floor was covered with petals.

"Careful. It is an illusory formation," Xiangliu Fang shouted.

"I knew it. This place, the main palace, the Witchriver Palace…there's no way we'd be able to acquire it so easily." Youngflame Nong laughed coldly. With Uncle Fang present, he wasn't nervous at all. This was a formation that had been in storage for countless years, and it didn't have anyone truly controlling it; at most, this formation would be able to unleash a tenth of its power.

"Assemble into formation." Ji Ning, Mu Northson, Yu Wei, Adept Vastriver, and Ninelotus all immediately assembled into that five-elements, pentagonal formation. All of them were on their guard.

"This illusory formation is very formidable; even divine sense is unable to see through it," Adept Vastriver said. "And I have a vague feeling…that this formation is even stronger than the one which had been located in the Vault of Treasures."

"This formation seems to be gathering Azurewood Godbolts," Ning said with a frown.

"It seems you understand a bit about formations as well." Xiangliu Fang, standing next to Youngflame Nong, gave Ning a glance, then said calmly, "This formation activates the power of the Solar Star. Using wood to guide the power, it generates Azurewood Godbolts. Although no one is controlling it, you still can't underestimate the power of the Azurewood Godbolts. I need some time to break this formation; I wish all of you the best during this time."

Ning and the rest of the five moved closer to each other, prepared to deal with the Azurewood Godbolts at any moment. They didn't dare to run about wildly; to do so in this illusory world was to seek death.

"I, I, what should I do?" Xue Hongyi was panicking internally, but on the surface, he continued to grit his teeth and wait.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Suddenly, three bolts of azure lightning thundered down from up above, smashing directly towards Youngflame Nong.

"Someone is commanding the formation?" Xiangliu Fang was shocked.

"How could someone be commanding it?" The nearby Youngflame Nong was panicked as well.

Whoosh! Xiangliu Fang stretched his large hands out. His hands were like dark clouds capable of covering the skies and smothering the sun; they stretched out to those three bolts of lightning. Boom, boom, boom…the lightning struck against the giant hands, and although the giant hands sank down momentarily, and the skin on the hands split apart as lightning writhed and spat against them, the hands endured.

"Hahaha, young master, don't worry." While receiving the lightning bolts, Xiangliu Fang actually began to laugh loudly. "Immortal Witchriver died countless hundreds of millions of years ago; the Witchriver Palace definitely has no living creatures within it. Anything still surviving should be a golem. Generally speaking, golems only possess a simple level of intelligence; at most, they can activate formations. They aren't able to control them. After all, this sort of large formation is quite complicated. Without Immortal Witchriver passing down the the special technique to control it, there is no way they will be able to do so.

"If my guess is correct, the Witchriver Palace should have a powerful golem within it, and this golem should have a sentient spirit animating it. Thus, this golem is extremely intelligent, and is thus also skilled in controlling formations. Immortal Witchriver must have trusted him so much that he transmitted the formation control method to him," Xiangliu Fang laughed. "But unfortunately, he is still merely a golem, with no elemental ki within his body; at most, he is capable of unleashing twenty to thirty percent of the power of the formation."

As Xiangliu Fang was speaking loudly, one bolt of thunder after another continued to come crashing down from the skies. Xiangliu Fang, by himself, received all of these blows.

Ning and the others let out sighs of relief. Xiangliu Fang's guess was most likely accurate; to truly control a formation required the usage of elemental ki. If the ki was that of an Immortal, then the power of the formation would naturally increase greatly. But golems didn't have any ki at all; even if they were able to control the formation, they would only be able to, at most, increase its power by a small amount.

"Humans, you are not the Immortal's heirs. To barge into the Witchriver Palace is a capital offense." A furious shout rang out from within the illusion of a peach garden.

"A capital offense? Who is going to carry out the penalty, you? If my guess is correct, you are at most comparable to an ordinary Loose Immortal in strength," Xiangliu Fang laughed coldly. "Your power is far from being a match for mine."

As soon as his words came out, Xiangliu Fang suddenly let out a savage howl. "BREAK!" Instantly, Xiangliu Fang's hands swung outward, howling out as the fingers on his large hands all transformed into giant serpents. The ten giant serpents instantly latched onto something in the void and gave it a hard pull. The entire formation immediately seemed to have been 'stuck', and the peach blossom formation trembled, grew blurry, and completely vanished.

"How can this be?!" An astonished cry.

With the disappearance of the peach blossom, Ning's group once more was able to see the giant hall, and the tables within it.

"Not bad, not bad. I managed to survive. Fortunately, that golem was extremely intelligent and knew that it had to kill Youngflame Nong, and so it focused all of its efforts on him. If those lightning bolts had struck amongst the rest of us, although those five of the Black-White College would probably be able to endure it, I would have been in danger." Xue Hongyi felt as though he had been blessed with tremendous luck.

Last time, when he and Adept Bu You had faced those attacks from the golems, Adept Bu You had died, while he had been lucky and survived. He had then acquired an Immortal-ranked magic treasure, and just now avoided yet another tribulation. He had survived multiple dangerous encounters, and had even acquired an Immortal-ranked treasure. Wasn't this a tremendous blessing of luck?

"The formation is already broken." Xiangliu Fang swept the hall with his gaze, then said calmly, "Everyone, no need to be afraid. Immortal Witchriver was only a Celestial Immortal, and his roots were not very deep; it is already quite impressive for him to have produced a golem that is fairly close to a Loose Immortal in power. If that golem doesn't appear, then fine; if he does, however, I'll capture him."

Youngflame Nong laughed and nodded, then instructed, "There are golems lying in wait within the Witchriver Palace. Everyone, don't run around rashly; if you run into those golems, Uncle Fang won't be able to save you in time."

"How could we dare to run about rashly? Are we suicidal?" Xue Hongyi hurriedly responded.

Ning and the others shared a glance. Clearly, an extremely powerful golem was lying in wait within the Witchriver Palace. They were no fools; naturally, they wouldn't run about wildly within.

Xiangliu Fang and Youngflame Nong moved to the front of the main hall, beginning to bind a bronze lamp.

"Haha, this is the core of the final palace." Youngflame Nong was utterly delighted. "After binding it, the entire Immortal estate will be under my complete control. The Witchriver Palace definitely has other dangers lurking within; however, there's no need at all for us to go and take any risks. Once I bind the Immortal estate, the golems will naturally have lost."

Ning and the others nodded.

"The rest of you, be careful; those golems won't just watch and wait for me to successfully bind this palace. I imagine they will try to ambush us," Youngflame Nong said.

Eighteen savage, fearsome looking Qiongqi Manticore golems were looking at their leader, a black- armored, muscular man. The black-armored man growled, "That person who broke the formation just now, he is most likely a Fiendgod. He was able to make his hands so large, and his fingers transform into giant serpents; only true Fiendgods are capable of such a thing. From the techniques he displayed, I can tell that he is more powerful than me."

"Commander, what should we do?"

"They are starting to bind the Witchriver Palace."

The Qiongqi golems were all panicking.

"I estimate he will need two hours to completely bind the Witchriver Palace," the black-armored man said in a low voice. "We need to come up with a method…and we need to succeed in one try. We need to kill the humans that Fiendgod is protecting. From the conversation between those humans when they first arrived, that human should have already bound the other four palaces. This is the last one."

"Prepare to obey my orders." The black-armored man's cold, dark eyes flashed with a freezing light.

A group of Zifu Disciples were scattered in the surrounding area. Ji Ning, Ninelotus, Adept Vastriver, Xue Hongyi, and the others were all waiting vigilantly, worried that the golem might suddenly attack.

Youngflame Nong, seated high above at the front of the hall and binding that bronze lamp, seeing how nervous everyone in the hall was, couldn't help but frown. He barked, "No need to be so nervous. It's just a few golems. If one comes, Uncle Fang will capture one. They will definitely lose."

Ji Ning and the others, including Xue Hongyi, silently tightened their lips. Yes, Xiangliu Fang could defeat all comers. But the most powerful of those golems had the combat strength of an ordinary Loose Immortal; if golems of such power were to suddenly attack and catch this group off guard, some of them might die. They were not protected by Xiangliu Fang, after all.

"Attend me." Youngflame Nong, seeing how Ning and the others remained vigilant, couldn't help but frown and bark, "Prepare a celebratory banquet."

Very soon, the two Zifu Disciple maidservants who personally served Youngflame Nong had prepared a banquet of fine wine. Actually, during the two day journey on the warship from Serpentwing Lake of Swallow Mountain to the Immortal estate, they had often drank and enjoyed themselves, and so the fine wine had been prepared long ago. Very soon, the table became filled with wine, spirit-fruit, and delicacies.

Youngflame Nong sat down in the lotus position, laughing loudly as he scooped up a goblet of wine. He only needed to use up a small amount of his attention on binding the bronze lamp. "Everyone, no need to worry. The outer perimeter will be handled by my Zifu Deathsworn; even if golems attack, they'll be the first ones engaged, giving you enough time to react and fight back."

"Sit, all of you," Youngflame Nong called out. Seeing Ning and the others continue to hesitate, he couldn't help but snap, "I told you all to sit!"

Ning and the others exchanged a glance. They had no choice but to sit down.

"That's more like it."

Youngflame Nong laughed, "You've all accompanied me into this Witchriver Immortal Estate and engaged repeated dangers with me. You've rendered quite a few merits. However, this is the final moment; after I bind this bronze lamp, the task shall be complete. Although a few golems continue to resist, they aren't much to be worried about. Come, let us toast each other for the treasures we have gained, and for my successful binding of the Witchriver Immortal Estate." After speaking, Youngflame Nong lifted up his bronze wineglass, etched with a tattoo of flames.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 22 – Youngflame Nong's True Face

"Let us down this cup together," Xue Hongyi hurriedly called out. He wanted to flatter Youngflame Nong as best as he could, because in his heart, he was still thinking about later leaving the Witchriver Immortal Estate, then fleeing alive with the Immortal-ranked magic item in tow!

"My fellow disciples, we must be vigilant against the outsiders. Let's not drink this wine," Adept Vastriver sent mentally.

"We were useful to him earlier, but now we are useless; who knows what sort of tricks he might play," Northson sent as well.

But Ninelotus said, "I imagine he wouldn't dare to be so heartless and crazed."

While sending mental messages amongst themselves, they all lifted up their cups and drank from it.

"Gulp." The wine entered Ji Ning's mouth, then a surge of elemental ki surrounded the liquid. The liquid was completely vaporized by a streak of fire. Only then did Ning put down his winecup.

"Chun and Ji, the two of you, perform a dance and help us enjoy ourselves." Youngflame Nong was in an extremely fine mood as he gave the orders. Instantly, two of the female Zifu Disciples behind him moved. Previously, their robes were in the shape of maid robes, but the robes now changed. Their sleeves fluttered as the two of them laughed, unveiling their astonishing charisma as the two of them began to dance gracefully in the center of the palace hall.

Strum. Clink. Three other nearby Zifu Disciples who were musicians moved to those ancient musical instruments in the hall, then in a very practiced manner, began to drum and strum. Although countless years had passed, the instruments were completely undamaged, as they were all magical treasures.

One melody rang out after another, while the beautiful courtesans danced. Youngflame Nong was absolutely delighted with himself as he watched and drank, and Ning and the others all accompanied him.

His spirits having grown increasingly high as he drank, Youngflame Nong suddenly glanced sideways at the truly peerless, fairy-like beauty, 'Yu Wei'. In terms of appearance and aura, even he, Youngflame Nong, who had seen reincarnated fairy-like maidens in the capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty, felt her to be astonishing. His throat went a little dry, and his heart began to grow heated. The desire he had held down this entire time was beginning to rise.

Still, he knew quite well that this Rainbowflame Fairy would probably be hard to convince. Thus, he then looked towards Ninelotus, then laughed, "Little Sister Ninelotus, now that I have completed my task, we need to have a good celebration. Little Sister Ninelotus, why don't you perform a dance to us and help us celebrate?"

"Eh?" Ning frowned, his face growing somewhat unsightly. 'Little Sister' Ninelotus? This was not a form of address for Youngflame Nong to use. And he wanted Ninelotus to dance? How could Ning not feel angry?

"This Youngflame Nong is going too far," Little Qing sent through the spirit-link. "Master, this Youngflame Nong holds you in no regard at all; he knows that you are Ninelotus are Dao-Companions, but he still acts in such a way." Indeed, all of the others present in the hall were stunned.

Ninelotus was astonished as well. She first gave Ning a glance, then said hurriedly, "Young master Youngflame, I have no talent in dance. Compared with the beautiful courtesans you have by your side, I am far inferior; I'd rather not go up and embarrass myself."

"How can they compare with you, Little Sister Ninelotus?" Youngflame Nong laughed, "What, aren't you even going to give me, Youngflame Nong, even this tiny bit of face?"

Ninelotus hesitated a moment, then put a smile on her face. "Then I'll go up and dance to a song." At the same time, she gave Ning a glance.

Ning just sat there, an ugly look on his face. It was just a dance. With so many fellow disciples present, it wasn't appropriate for Ning to grow angry.

"Ning, son, be careful," the Whitewater Hound sent spiritually. "Inviting her to dance as part of the victory celebrations is a small matter. Youngflame Nong clearly knows that you and Ninelotus are Dao-Companions, but when he asked her to dance, he didn't even look at you or say a single word to you. Clearly, he holds you in no regard at all. Given that, you need to be careful."

Ning immediately came to his senses. "Don't worry, Uncle White. I understand," Ning sent back, and then turned to look at Ninelotus, who was dancing in the middle of the hall, in tune with the melodies.

As Ning watched, he suddenly realized…that Ninelotus was actually a very skilled dancer.

Truth be told, Ning knew far too little about the Dongyan clan and the other major clans. The people which future clan leaders like Ninelotus interacted with were generally some of the more formidable figures of the entire Grand Xia Dynasty, and thus she would learn a bit of this and a bit of that, so as to ensure that her performance in any event was perfect.

"Good, good, good." Youngflame Nong laughed as he drank his wine, occasionally clapping his hands in praise.

Ninelotus was like a blooming lotus flower, swirling about throughout the hall.

But as she moved closer to Youngflame Nong, Youngflame Nong suddenly swung his arm out. A long, black whip actually swept out, coiling around Ninelotus' arm, then tugging at her. Ninelotus, caught completely offguard, couldn't help but be pulled even closer to Youngflame Nong. Still, Ninelotus was a Wanxiang Adept; by activating her elemental ki, she managed to stabilize herself as she was pulled closer to Youngflame Nong.

However, Youngflame Nong intimately grabbed her by the arm; he had originally actually been planning on taking her by the waist. Laughing, he pulled at Ninelotus' arm, wanting to pull her in while saying, "Little Sister Ninelotus, come, let's drink a cup of wine together."

This scene shocked everyone present in the hall.

"What?!" Mu Northson, Yu Wei, and the others were all shocked. As for Xue Hongyi, he just gave Ning a sideways glance, revealing a cold smile as he took a sip of wine.

Ning felt as though his head had gone blank. Earlier, Ninelotus' dance could have been said to be a performance for everyone, but now…

BANG!

Ning suddenly rose to his feet, smashing his hand hard against the table. This table was technically a Mortal-ranked magic treasure, but it was only used for holding wine and food; it wasn't meant for combat. In addition, Ning was currently gripped by rage, and even his eyes had begun to turn bloodshot. This slap towards the table was actually even more powerful than the palm blows he would deliver in a life-or-death battle.

The energy wave alone from this palm blow smashed all of the plates into tiny pieces, and the fine wine and meat were utterly transformed into dust. BOOM!!! The entire table actually was split apart. Large amounts of shards went flying everywhere, and some of them actually sliced across the body of a nearby Zifu Disciple, causing blood to instantly fly everywhere.

"Hm?" Youngflame Nong immediately gave him a cold look. "What, I can't even share a drink of wine with Little Sister Ninelotus?" As he finished speaking, a hint of anger appeared on Youngflame Nong's face.

Youngflame Nong's anger would've instantly reduced most people to a quivering pile of fear. But Ning's eyes only reddened further. Ignoring all else, he barked out, "Youngflame Nong!"

"Ji Ning." Ninelotus realized that Youngflame Nong's eyes had a hint of a murderous intent in them, and she immediately barked out towards Ning.

Ning looked at Ninelotus, then said coldly, "Ninelotus, there's no need for you to pay any heed to this young master of the Youngflame clan. Hmph. He's not even the Godplume Duke yet! When we first followed him into the Immortal estate, he was so mild and humble. But not that we are useless to him, this is how he acts!"

"You are courting death." Youngflame Nong's anger was beginning to build. Previously, Ning was a useful assistant, but he was now useless. Geniuses like him…they weren't much in the eyes of him, Youngflame Nong.

Ning said angrily, "Do you remember our original agreement? You made us promises in the name of your Youngflame clan. What, now that you have the Immortal estate, you are planning to act against us? Are you feeling greedy for the treasures we acquired in the Immortal estate? You endured it then, but are now planning to act against us?"

"Be silent!" Ninelotus cried out.

"Ninelotus." Ning was utterly infuriated.

"Sit down!" Ninelotus shouted at him, while also sending him a frantic mental message. "Ji Ning, you are too rash. Think about Youngflame Nong's status. He's normally in the imperial capital, and when together with the imperial princes and various young dukelings, they often act in dissolute, wanton ways. I just have to deal with it and drink a few cups of wine with him, and this matter will be at an end. If you let anger cloud your mind, then it will be trouble."

Ning sent back, "Some things, I can endure, but others, I cannot. Ninelotus…"

"Are you trying to get yourself killed? You want to fight him?!" Ninelotus sent furiously, "Don't be so immature!"

Ning was stunned.

Immature?

Youngflame Nong was naturally watching the mental argument between Ninelotus and Ning.

"It seems as though this young and famous Ji Ning doesn't live up to his reputation," Youngflame Nong sent mentally to the Fiendgod by his side, Xiangliu Fang. "A scene like this has already angered him to the point of insanity. To deal with him would be simplicity itself. For now, however, there's no rush to deal with him; if I kill him within the Immortal estate, once the news of it is spread out by the Dongyan clan, the other large tribes will all think of me, Youngflame Nong, as a narrow-minded man."

"Right." Xiangliu Fang concurred.

Ninelotus' words had truly enraged Ning now.

Who was Ninelotus? She was the next leader of the Dongyan clan! There was absolutely no need for her to compromise in such a manner; since there was no need, why did she do so?

"Young master Youngflame, Ji Ning is still young; please pardon him." Ninelotus smiled towards Youngflame Nong.

Youngflame Nong didn't continue with his earlier actions. He could tell that if he went just a bit farther, this Ji Ning probably would actually start to a fight to the death against him. He dared to kill Ji Ning, but Ninelotus? Ninelotus was the next leader of the Dongyan clan. If he killed her, he would be in serious trouble.

Ninelotus quickly returned to Ning's side and sat down. Ning remained seated in the lotus position on his chair. Zifu Disciple servants removed the shattered magic treasure table in front of him, replacing it with a new one.

"Ji Ning." As soon as Ninelotus returned to her seat, she immediately spoke mentally to Ning. "Calm down."

"Oh, so you know I'm pissed?" Ning looked towards NInelotus.

"This really was nothing. This was a small matter. If in the future, you were to see how the young masters of the major clans act when they are together, you'll understand that this sort of minor flirtation…it really means nothing. Generally speaking, everyone has a bottom line that they won't cross; to engage in a little playing around is nothing," Ninelotus sent. "You've seen too little, which is why you were so easily enraged. Look over there; after drinking a cup of wine, Youngflame Nong is no longer harping on this matter."

"I've seen too little?" Ning sent back with a shout, "Bottom line? Ninelotus, you are my Dao-Companion. This so-called 'a little playing around' of yours, being embraced by others men, being teased by them, drinking with them…these thigns have already gone beyond my bottom line. Do you understand?"

"You…how can you act this way?" Ninelotus was furious as well.

"That's the way I am. Can it be that you didn't know?" Ning stared at her.

Ninelotus and Ning's gazes intersected. She could sense the determination and resolve from Ning's eyes.

"Fine. I won't be act like this in the future." Ninelotus lowered her head.

Ning lowered his head as well, beginning to drink. Although Ninelotus had bowed her head to him, Ning still felt as though there were thorns stuck in his heart. Just now, he truly hoped that Ninelotus would directly refuse Youngflame Nong. Even if she didn't throw the cup of wine into Youngflame Nong's face, she had to at least turn and immediately leave.

In this recent period of time, the two had already argued twice due to differences in the way they behaved towards others. This time, their fight was due to the fact that they handled matters and conducted themselves in completely different ways.

"Heh. Heh. Heh heh." Youngflame Nong, seated at the front of the hall, was able to tell that there was some unhappiness between Ji Ning and Ninelotus. He actually laughed…and then his gaze fell towards the nearby Rainbowflame Fairy, Yu Wei. The flames in his heart blazed even hotter. The desire he felt towards Yu Wei was far stronger than the desire he felt towards Ninelotus.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 23 – Windwing Evasion

Quite a few thoughts were going through Youngflame Nong's mind. At the same time, the other members of the Black-White College began to console Ji Ning.

"Junior apprentice-brother, endure it," Adept Vastriver sent to Ning. "After we leave the Witchriver Immortal Estate, you won't have to stay here and swallow Youngflame Nong's attitude."

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning," Yu Wei sent, worried, "We aren't able to beat Youngflame Nong right now. However, truly powerful Immortal cultivators rely on themselves; no matter what how impressive he might be, in the future, Youngflame Nong will only be the Godplume Duke, whereas the real powers behind the Youngflame clan are those old fellows who have lived for countless years. When you train to the Celestial Immortal level in the future, the Youngflame clan will treat you with courtesy, not daring to slacken off in the slightest. What would a Godplume Duke be to you? He's nothing more than a titular leader."

Ning gave Yu Wei a look. He had met with the Lord of Cui Manor and Granny Meng, and had watched as a great power had assaulted the Six Paths of Reincarnation! His master, Daoist Threelives, was one of the most incredible figures of the Three Realms…it really was as she had said; personal strength was the truest foundation to power.

If Ning were to also become a major power of the Three Realms, what would a mere Youngflame clan, one of the clans subordinate to the Grand Xia Dynasty's major world, be to him? There were three thousand major worlds!

As long as he was able to reach the Celestial Immortal level, the Youngflame clan would be respectful to him. After all, it was rare for there to be even a single Celestial Immortal for every ten thousand Loose Immortals. Celestial Immortals were true Immortals, who had escaped the binds of the Three Realms and lived carefree lives.

"Senior apprentice-brother," Northson sent to him, "If you aren't happy with senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus, then as I see it, you should just break up. I mean, I'm just saying…it's up to you, and how you really feel. You need to ask yourself if you truly want for senior apprentice-sister Ninelotus to be your Dao-Companion."

Ning gave Northson a glance. "Junior apprentice-brother, no need to say anything further."

In his heart…Ning truly did like Ninelotus. In his past life and in this life, Ning had never been in a romantic relationship. He couldn't quite explain how he felt towards her, but he truly did feel a hazy liking for her. However, these recent arguments had caused Ning to truly feel upset!

"Glugglugglug." Ning held his cup, constantly drinking wine. Although he downed one cup after another, all of the wine continued to be burnt away by flames after it entered his body.

Ninelotus sat there in the lotus position, staring at the constantly drinking Ning.

"It seems Ji Ning is really angry." Ninelotus felt frustrated as well. "How can Ji Ning act like this. I lowered my head to him, and this wasn't even a big deal to begin with. This sort of thing is too common; I just had to deal with it in a casual, superficial manner. Why does he have to be so angry about it? If he gets angry at this and angry at that…in the future, after I become the leader of the Dongyan clan, am I supposed to follow his every wish and desire?"

"I'll let him calm down and sober up first. He should understand, later."

One had been held up high since childhood, and had been chosen to be the next leader of a major clan.

The other came from a world of peace in his past life, and was a genius who had been born into a backwater clan in this life.

The two of them attracted each other. When they had been in the secluded peach-garden utopia of Serpentwing Lake, there had been no problems, but once they truly began to face worldly affairs together, their disagreements had begun to constantly worsen.

Ning and Ninelotus were both feeling rather frustrated in their hearts.

Suddenly…

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

A figure carrying a terrifying, tremendous force came charging in. Those Zifu Deathsworn that had been stationed in the outer perimeter instantly blew apart, their bodies being knocked flying and blood spraying verywhere. In the blink of an eye, the entire hall was transformed into an asura's hell, the floor stained with blood and chunks of meat.

"The golem." Youngflame Nong, seated at the front of the hall, was greatly surprised, but then he immediately grew excited and eager.

One golem after another charged in. As for Ji Ning and the others, as they had been assigned to sit down at various locations in the table, they weren't able to assemble into formation.

"That dogshit Youngflame Nong…he said that those Zifu Deathsworn would be able to hold on for a few moments, but in reality, they weren't able to do so at all." Ning's Darknorth swords appeared in his hands as he hurriedly blocked the Qiongqi Manticore golem which was pouncing towards him.

BOOM!

Ning's sword-light flashed out, crashing against the body of the Qiongqi golem and sending it flying away.

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, protect junior apprentice-brother Mu Northson," Adept Vastriver sent.

"I know, don't worry," Ning said hurriedly.

This hall was simply too large. Ning's group had been divided into two rows that sat on each end of the table. Ninelotus, Vastriver, and Yu Wei were on the side opposite to Ning, and were quite far from each other as well. As for Ning, Northson, and Xue Hongyi, they were on the same side. Right now, six Qiongqi golems were throwing themselves against Ning and the rest of the six Wanxiang Adepts. Even more of the golems were charging towards Youngflame Nong!

It was very easy for Ning to handle a single Qiongqi golem, but clearly it was a bit difficult for Northson; Northson was more talented in controlling golems, not at close combat.

Swoosh. A pair of black wings appeared on Ning's back, and the wings fluttered as he began to execute the Windwing Evasion, howling through the air as he moved next to Northson. His sword-light flashed out, striking against a Primal-level Qiongqi golem and sending it flying.

"Thank you, senior apprentice-brother." Northson was covered with cold sweat, and he hurriedly controlled a giant silver serpent construct, sending it into battle.

"It's nothing." Ning laughed, twin swords in hands, and then lotus petals began to bloom around him, easily blocking those two Qiongqi golems.

Ning and the others, including Xue Hongyi, were each dealing with a single Qiongqi golem. In truth, these six golems weren't meant to kill them; they were assigned to keep them tied down. The other twelve Qiongqi golems and their black-armored leader simultaneously charged towards Youngflame Nong.

"Hahaha…" Youngflame Nong laughed loudly. "Capture them."

Xiangliu Fang's twin hands struck out, and those massive hands seemed to cover the skies as they did so. His fingers transformed into massive serpents, which seemed to coil about as they moved to wrap around the Qiongqi golems. In fact, some of them managed to snare two Qiongqi golems each. All twelve of them were actually seized by his giant hands…but the black-armored man pulled out a longsword from within his leg with his right arm, hacking it directly against Xiangliu Fang's hands.

BOOM!

The surrounding area was filled with a deafening explosion. Actually, it was quite taxing for Xiangliu Fang to rely on nothing but a pair of hands to capture those twelve Qiongqi golems. The power of this sword attack was even more tremendous. His hands trembled and were knocked aside, allowing the Qiongqi golems to all escape their captor.

"Eh?" Xiangliu Fang was shocked. "This sword of yours…"

CHOP. The black-armored man transformed into a streak of light, charging forwards and slamming the sword down towards Xiangliu Fang once more.

Right at this moment, the other twelve Qiongqi golems howled through the air, flying towards Youngflame Nong. Youngflame Nong frowned, and instantly that enormous Redscale Salamander appeared around him. At the same time, a leaf-like Dao-seal appeared in his hand.

"They are rather irritating." Youngflame Nong muttered softly, but he felt completely confident; he had Uncle Fang, the Redscale Salamander, and a protective treasure; he was definitely going to win.

"Growl…"

The Redscale Salamander howled with rage as it fought against the Qiongqi golems. But suddenly, a Qiongqi golem reached out to snatch the nearby bronze lamp, then began to run away withi t!

"The bronze lamp!" Youngflame Nong was shocked. Now, he understood. These golems weren't meant to kill him; they knew that they weren't strong enough to do that. Thus, their real target was the bronze lamp. To bind a treasure, one had to be right next to it and slowly use one's elemental ki to bind it. If one was a bit too far away, or if someone else took possession of it, then there would be no way for one to fill it with elemental ki. Naturally, then, there would be no way to bind it.

This would result in it taking forever for him to control the Immortal estate. Given how well these golems knew the Witchriver Palace, they could simply play hide-and-seek with him within it. The golems could delay for thousands of years…but he could not.

"Quick, seize the bronze lamp," Youngflame Nong howled furiously..

Xiangliu Fang immediately let out an astonishing howl as well. His right arm suddenly split apart and flew out from his body. His severed right arm blasted out with a sky-filling black-colored divine power, which rippled forth, then transformed the right arm into a new Xiangliu Fang. As for the original Xiangliu Fang, he grew out a new arm.

In the blink of an eye, two Xiangliu Fang's had appeared within the main hall. However, by the time this splitting process had completed, that Qiongqi golem had already charged out of the main hall; after all, Primal-level Qiongqi golems were indeed as fast as lightning.

One Xiangliu Fang remained in combat against the black-armored man. The other, however, went chasing after the Qiongqi golem that had fled with the bronze lamp. With a swoosh, he charged into the corridor, continuing his pursuit.

"Two Xiangliu Fang's? A clone?" Ning and the others were all shocked.

"The bronze lamp, the bronze lamp! Damn them, damn them!" Youngflame Nong bellowed with rage. But right at this moment, at a distant corridor within the hall, Xiangliu Fang suddenly reappeared, bronze lamp in one hand, sack in the other.

"Haha." Youngflame Nong instantly laughed.

As for the black-armored man, he immediately felt disappointed. He knew that the difference in power between himself and these invading humans was simply too great; thus, he had hoped to catch them offguard and seize the bronze lamp. Unfortunately, this Fiendgod was truly too powerful; the Fiendgod was able to tie him down with one body, then use another one to chase after the Qiongqi golem and bring the bronze lamp back.

"The overall situation has been cast in stone." Youngflame Nong immediately felt completely relaxed, watching the battle going on in the rest of the hall with leisure. But as he did so, his face suddenly changed.

He was looking at Ning and Northson, located far away from him. Ning was wielding two Darknorth swords, and on his back was a pair of black wings; he was effortlessly blocking two Qiongqi golems.

"Wings?" Youngflame Nong carefully watched the way in which Ning moved. At the same time, he sent mentally to Xiangliu Fang, "Uncle Fang, look at Ji Ning."

Xiangliu Fang's two bodies had merged into one again. Fighting at full power once more, Xiangliu Fang stuffed the black-armored man into his sack. Upon hearing Youngflame Nong's words, he immediately turned to look. Upon doing so, his face changed as well.

"Uncle Fang, that's the Windwing Evasion. I'm not mistaken, am I?" Youngflame Nong asked.

Windwing Evasion.

Youngflame Nong himself had never trained in it, but he had watched his clansmen train in it repeatedly. Because of how often he had seen it, and because he had personally read the contents of the [Windwing Evasion] manual, he could see traces of it in the way Ning moved.

"Right. That's the Windwing Evasion. I've trained in it before. Although Ji Ning is using wings to mask it, he is definitely using the Windwing Evasion," Xiangliu Fang sent mentally. "In the past, the descendants of the Yuchi clan also used wings to hide it; Ji Ning is using the same old trick. Although this is a rather clumsy method, unless one has an extremely deep understanding of the Windwing Evasion, there's no way one would be able to tell."

Youngflame Nong sent mentally, "Uncle Fang, how could Ji Ning know the Windwing Evasion?"

"It should be one of the surviving spawns of the Yuchi clan!" Xiangliu Fang sent back.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 24 –Enmity Born From Genocide

"Surviving spawns of the Yuchi clan?" Youngflame Nong began to feel a killing intent in his heart. "Not a single member of the Yuchi clan is to be spared, and those members of the Yuchi clan who have trained in the Windwing Evasion are all the more deserving of death. The Windwing Evasion…only my Youngflame clan can have it. It cannot be learned by others!"

The secret arts and divine abilities which were unique to a certain major clan were absolutely forbidden to be taught to others. Any outsiders who learned these techniques would suffer pursuit and assault!

"Uncle Fang, let's deal with these golems first." Youngflame Nong had no desire to play around anymore at all. For the first time, he truly had the desire to kill Ji Ning.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Xiangliu Fang's two large hands swished through the air, snatching away at the Qiongqi golems with abandon while shouting, "Everyone, stop these Qiongqi golems. Don't let them escape; if they escape, they'll cause problems in the future." While saying this, he continually captured Qiongqi golems and stuffed them into his sack.

Everyone did their best to stop the Qiongqi golems from escaping, allowing Xiangliu Fang to capture them, one by one.

"They really were suicidal." The black wings on Ning's back disappeared. He gave a glance to the bloodstained corpses on the ground. Although those Zifu Disciples were all Deathsworn and were able to assemble into formation…the difference between them and golems at the Primal level of power was simply too vast. The first wave of assaults from the Qiongqi Manticore golems had caused virtually all of the Zifu Disciples to be wiped out, leaving behind only ten or so.

"How pitiable. They were Zifu Disciples…but against these golems, they were completely useless. And yet, Youngflame Nong insisted on having them watch the perimeter; clearly, he didn't give a damn about them dying," Mu Northson sent with a mental sigh. "Youngflame Nong truly is cold-blooded."

These Deathsworn had been voluntarily gifted by Northmont Yin and some others. To Youngflame Nong, however, these Deathsworn had been raised by outside clans, and there was no way the Youngflame clan would truly trust them. There was no point to him bringing him back! And yet, he couldn't just 'return' them back to Northmont Yin. Thus, he might as well let them die. If some were lucky enough to survive, then that meant that they had been blessed with good fortune and might be worthy of bringing back to the clan and training.

The few lucky Zifu Disciple survivors hurriedly began to clean the hall, completely removing all of the corpses and bloodstains and restoring it to a pristine condition.

Youngflame Nong reseated himself at the front of the hall. His gaze cold, he stared directly at Ning, then barked, "Ji Ning!"

Everyone in the hall was stunned.

Northson, Yu Wei, Ninelotus, Adept Vastriver, and Xue Hongyi were all astonished; they could sense that there was a terrifying look in Youngflame Nong's eyes, and the cold, tyrannical way he had just shouted was something they could all sense. Not even earlier, when Ning had shattered the table, had Youngflame Nong been so formal and cold.

"Young master Youngflame." Ning looked towards Youngflame Nong. "What is it? Speak.."

"Youngflame Nong." This time, it was Ninelotus, seated on the other side, who grew angry. "Ji Ning is my Dao-Companion. Earlier, he offended you, but that was just a minor matter. For you to act this way…you are being a bit too narrow-minded."

Although these young masters and princes of major clans often chatted and teased each other, there were some bottom lines that could not be crossed. Ji Ning was her Dao-Companion, after all, and he had also helped Youngflame Nong this time. It was one thing for the two of them to have had a bit of friction earlier, but for Youngflame Nong to act this way now was going too far.

"Ninelotus, you'll understand after hearing what I say," Youngflame Nong said coldly.

"Then I shall listen attentively," Ninelotus said with cold anger as well.

"Ji Ning, I ask you this." Youngflame Nong looked at Ning. "Just now, was the divine ability you displayed the Windwing Evasion?"

Ning was stunned.

Windwing Evasion? How did Youngflame Nong know about the Windwing Evasion? Ning's mother's clan, the Yuchi clan, had been almost completely obliterated; most likely, the only remaining member was Ning's uncle's daughter, and Ning didn't even know if she was still alive. Ning could be somewhat considered a descendant of the Yuchi clan…but the Yuchi clan was extremely secretive about the Windwing Evasion to begin with.

"No need to deny it. You used the Windwing Evasion," Youngflame Nong said with a cold laugh. "Uncle Fang, display it for him."

Whoosh.

Xiangliu Fang suddenly disappeared from Youngflame Nong's side. He seemed to have transformed into a giant Roc, instantly appearing in the center of the main hall. Then, with another movement, he retreated and returned to Youngflame Nong's side.

Ning, seeing this, felt his heart tremble. His other fellow disciples of the Black-White College couldn't tell, but he himself, as a practitioner of the Windwing Evasion, could – Xiangliu Fang truly was using the Windwing Evasion! In addition, it was even more precise and profound than Ning's own usage! But this made sense; after all, Ning was only a Fiendgod Body Refiner; compared to Xiangliu Fang, a true Fiendgod, he was still far inferior.

"They are the culprits!"

"They are the ones who annihilated my clan!"

A thought suddenly entered Ning's mind. "Can it be that it was the Youngflame clan which annihilated my mother's Yuchi clan? Can it be that the grandparents and aunts and uncles who I never met were all slain by the Youngflame clan?"

"Well?" Youngflame Nong looked at Ning. "Is it the same as yours?"

"I do indeed train in the Windwing Evasion." Ning knew that there was no point in lying. Frowning, he said, "But so what if it is?"

Ninelotus, Yu Wei, Adept Vastriver, and Northson all sood there, watching nervously but not rushing to speak.

Youngflame Nong laughed loudly, "The Windwing Evasion technique was originally unique to the Yuchi clan of the Eastisle Commandery of our Grand Xia Dynasty."

Ning, hearing this, felt his heart shake.

"The Yuchi clan had possessed this divine ability for a long, long time; however, they relied on using wing-type magic treasures to hide it. Our Youngflame clan, however, found out about it long ago. After preparing for an extremely long period of time, we annihilated the entire Yuchi clan in one blow…but were unable to find the original manual of the [Windwing Evasion]! Some of the powerful Immortals of my Youngflame clan personally intervene and used a soul-scour technique to collect enough memories from members of the Yuchi clan to completely rebuild the [Windwing Evasion] manual from scratch." Youngflame Nong looked at Ning. "Right now, the [Windwing Evasion] is unique to my Youngflame clan, and it is absolutely forbidden to teach it to others. For you to learn the Windwing Evasion without the permission of my Youngflame clan…this, in and of itself, merits the death penalty for you. What's more, I suspect that you are one of the surviving spawn of the Yuchi clan!"

"SPEAK! Are you a surviving spawn of the Yuchi clan?" Youngflame Nong stared at Ning.

Everyone else now completely understood. So this was what it was all about! Warfare between clans…there was no real right or wrong in inter-clan warfare! Since the Youngflame clan had annihilated the Yuchi clan, and the Yuchi clan's Windwing Evasion technique was now solely possessed by the Youngflame clan…from the Youngflame clan's standpoint, it was true that all descendants of the Yuchi clan had to be annihilated. After all, between the two clans, there was now a grudge that stemmed from clan genocide.

"Ji Ning." Ninelotus sent to Ning, saying frantically, "No matter what, don't admit that you are a descendant of the Yuchi clan. If you admit to it, given that there is hatred that stems from clan genocide between you and the Youngflame clan, the Youngflame clan will definitely not permit you to remain alive. You only need to say that you acquired the original copy of the [Windwing Evasion] manual through happenstance, and that without knowing the full backstory, you learned it. Thus, since you didn't know it was forbidden to learn it, you cannot be blamed. I will have my Dongyan clan engage in negotiation with the Youngflame clan on your behalf, and this matter will quickly come to an end."

Ning looked towards Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang. His heart was filled with boundless rage. The Immortals of the Youngflame clan had soul-scoured the souls of many Yuchi clansmen in order to remake a complete Windwing Evasion.

Upon being soul-scoured, one's soul would generally be dispersed and destroyed.

"Damn. Damn. Damn!" Ning truly wanted to take revenge for his mother's entire clan.

"Are you the surviving spawn of the Yuchi clan?" Youngflame Nong stared at Ning, his murderous intent billowing to the heavens. Previously, during the banquet, he had just been flirting a bit with Ninelotus; he hadn't truly felt any desire to kill Ning. After all, he had to protect the Youngflame clan's face and reputation. However, if Ning truly was a spawn of the Yuchi clan, then even the patriarchs of the Youngflame clan were present, they would still mercilessly kill Ning.

In this moment, he was the representative of the entire Youngflame clan!

"I am not." Ning stared at Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang. He forcibly repressed his anger and said in a low voice, "Youngflame Nong, if you want to kill me, there's no need for you to put on such a show to find an excuse."

"My senior apprentice-brother has already spoken; there is no relationship between himself and the Yuchi clan," Northson said angrily. "Young master Youngflame, we came here to help you; is this how you are going to treat us?"

"Young master Youngflame, since my junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning has said that he is not a descendant of the Yuchi clan, that means he is not. He most likely acquired this divine ability through a fortuitous encounter. He can negotiate with your Youngflame clan and offer some compensatory gifts, then swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens that he absolutely will not pass this divine ability out ot anyone else," Adept Vastriver said.

Yu Wei spoke out as well. "Young master Youngflame, for you to claim at a time like this that junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is a descendant of the Yuchi clan…once word of this spreads, people will think that it is you, Youngflame Nong, who intentionally sought out an excuse to act against him."

"Youngflame Nong." Ninelotus stared at Youngflame Nong as well. Filled with wrath, she said, "Ji Ning is my Dao-Companion!"

Everyone was standing out, pressuring Youngflame Nong from all sides. But he only laughed.

"Hahaha…don't worry," Youngflame Nong said with a laugh. "Since Ji Ning has accompanied me on this trip through the Immortal estate, I'll give him a chance to live." As he spoke out, he produced a set of black manacles, covered with ancient golden runes. He tossed the manacles directly towards Ning. Clank. They landed on the ground before him.

"These are godlock chains." Youngflame Nong looked towards Ning. "Upon being manacled, you'll be like an ordinary mortal. Even Fiendgods, when locked by these chains, won't be able to resist. Put these chains on and wait for my orders. I can swear an oath as well; so long as you are not a spawn of the Yuchi clan, I absolutely will not kill you, nor harm your power. I will go out and engage in an investigation. If, however, I can verify that you are a spawn of the Yuchi clan, I will kill you. If you are not? I'll release you to your freedom."

Ning furrowed his brows.

Yu Wei spoke out in a high voice, "Young master Youngflame, think about how powerful your Youngflame clan is; is it necessary for you to act in such a petty manner? You can let junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning go free for now, then engage in your investigations; upon verifying the results, you can act against him later. Can it be that in the face of the power of your Youngflame clan, junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning would be able to escape your reach?"

"Ji Ning, do you agree or not?" Youngflame Nong looked at Ning. "I've given you your only way out."

Ning stared at Youngflaem Nong. "You want me to chain myself and hand over my life to you? Do you think this is possible?"

Youngflame Nong's face instantly turned even colder and more sinister.

No matter what, Ning would not voluntarily put the godlock chains around himself. But right at this moment…

"Young master Youngflame!" The nearby Xue Hongyi suddenly laughed coldly as he pointed at Ning. "Don't listen to his lies. This Ji Ning's father was known as Ji Yichuan, while his mother was known as Yuchi Snow!"

"You learned the Windwing Evasion, and your mother was Yuchi Snow?" Youngflame Nong instantly revealed a savage look on his face, and his voice became as cold as ice. "So you truly are the spawn of the Yuchi clan! Die! Ji Ning shall die! Anyone who attempts to block the path of the Youngflame clan in doing so will be killed, without reservation!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 25 – Grand Dao Domain

Everyone close to Ji Ning, such as Mu Northson and Ninelotus, all knew that Ning's mother was named Yuchi Snow. However, they all wanted to try and buy him some time; at the very least, they wanted to make sure that could leave this major world alive. Later on, the Dongyan clan and the Black-White College could use some methods at their disposal to ensure that Ning could be sent and escape to other lesser worlds, or perhaps even a different major world.

Unfortunately…

Xue Hongyi had thoroughly investigated Ning long ago, and had even purchased a set of intelligence reports regarding Ning from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. Naturally, he knew who Ning's parents were.

"Youngflame Nong!" Ninelotus was enraged.

"Hold!" Yu Wei's forehead suddenly began to glow with white light. Her aura quickly became terrifying as she, too, roared with fury.

Adept Vastriver and Mu Northson all called out in anger as well.

Whoooosh.

Xiangliu Fang only stretched out a single hand, which instantly expanded to a tremendous size. At the same time, his five fingers transformed into five giant serpents, each more than three hundred meters long. They stretched out towards Ninelotus, Yu Wei, Northson, and Adept Vastriver. Every single serpent emanated a terrifyingly powerful aura, causing the faces of Ninelotus and the others to become unsightly.

"Ninelotus, I won't kill you." Youngflame Nong pointed towards Ninelotus. "But those three fellow disciples of yours…Uncle Fang, if they dare interfere, just kill them."

Although he felt lust towards Yu Wei…women, to Youngflame Nong, were nothing more than playthings. Playthings, in the end, were still playthings; they could be killed at a moment's notice.

"You…"

"Youngflame Nong…"

Ninelotus, Northson, Yu Wei, and Adept Vastriver all stared towards him with hatred, but they knew exactly how strong Xiangliu Fang was; he was absolutely capable of crushing them. Although they had some protective items on them, those items would at most allow them to stay alive for a short period of time. To completely change the situation…was impossible.

"Senior apprentice-brother, senior apprentice-sister, junior apprentice-brother…Ninelotus." Ning looked towards Youngflame Nong, seated at the front of the hall, then said calmly, "There's no need for you to intervene. This is a matter between myself and Youngflame Nong."

"Ji Ning." Ninelotus called out frantically towards him.

Ning looked towards Ninelotus. "Don't worry."

"YOUNGFLAME NONG!!!" Ninelotus was absolutely livid. "You are provoking my Dongyan clan!"

"If it was the Forefather of the Dongyan clan who said these words to me, then I might truly be forced to reconsider. But you?" Youngflame Nong laughed, then shook his head.

Ninelotus suddenly produced a black lotus petal in her hand, a petal with an aura that inspired terror. The black lotus petal quickly expanded, causing Xiangliu Fang to called out icily, "Are you looking to die!?" His giant python-finger instantly smashed headlong against the black lotus flower, which trembled, then began to crack. This cracked black lotus flower continued to fly straight towards the giant serpent.

BOOM!

The giant serpent quickly froze into a statue of ice, then shattered apart. In fact, Xiangliu Fang's entire hand became frozen, all the way to his elbow, then began to splinter across. However, Xiangliu Fang's arm then once more grew out. WHAP. His fingers once more transformed into serpents, striking heavily against Ninelotus and causing her to be knocked flying, vomiting blood from her mouth.

"Not bad. Unfortunately, you were only capable of injuring Uncle Fang." Youngflame Nong shook his head. "Even I am unable to produce treasures capable of killing Uncle Fang. You?"

Xiangliu Fang was of the ancient Fiendgod 'Hydraga' race; his lifeforce was incredibly powerful, and his combat ability was comparable to a peak Loose Immortal's. To kill Xiangliu Fang? This was an incredibly hard task.

"Xue Hongyi, I'll give you a chance to render merits for yourself." Youngflame Nong looked towards Xue Hongyi. "Go and kill Ji Ning."

"Me? Kill Ji Ning?" Xue Hongyi was stunned.

"Are you going to kill him or not?" Youngflame Nong's eyes flashed with a cold light.

Xue Hongyi mentally cursed nonstop. He had been flattering Youngflame Nong this entire time, and had even told him that Ning's mother was named Yuchi Snow. He had done all of this in the hopes of making Youngflame Nong like him…but who would've imagined that Youngflame Nong would be this vicious? Youngflame Nong had actually ordered him to go kill Ji Ning…he had no confidence in being able to do so at all!

"Kill, yes, kill." Xue Hongyi nodded frantically, but in his heart, he thought to himself, "I'm not going to be able to kill Ji Ning, but I should be able to stay alive at least."

"Ji Ning, prepare to die," Xue Hongyi called out with anger, then instantly shot out a series of flying needles towards Ning.

Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang stood there at the front of the hall, watching this happen. A look of anticipation was in Youngflame Nong's eyes. "Xue Hongyi's strength should be a bit weaker than Ji Ning's; if Ji Ning really was to go all-out against him, he should be able to kill Xue Hongyi…and after Xue Hongyi dies, his Immortal-ranked magic treasure will be mine."

"Uncle Fang, after Xue Hongyi dies, you attack and kill Ji Ning," Youngflame Nong sent. "The Immortal-ranked magic treasure will be mine then."

"Yes, young master," Xiangliu Fang said.

Upon hearing Youngflame Nong say, the words, "Ji Ning shall die" and "anyone who attempts to block the path of the Youngflame clan in doing so will be killed," Ning had already made up his mind to kill Youngflame Nong!

Xiangliu Fang was far too powerful; Ning didn't feel any confidence in his ability to defeat him, but he had no choice now.

"Die." Xue Hongyi charged forward.

"First you. Then Youngflame Nong." Ning wielded his Darknorth swords in his hands. At this point, he couldn't be bothered to use wings to hide his technique.

Whoooooosh!!!

A series of flying needles filled the skies, shooting towards him.

"KILL!" Ning let out an enraged bellow. In this moment, Ning's sword-heart was more steadfast and firm than it had ever been before.

He understood now.

In this moment, he had embarked on a brand new path. If he didn't kill Youngflame Nong, then due to being physically located within this Immortal estate, he wouldn't be able to escape. He would die! But if he did kill Youngflame Nong, someone who had the highest chances to become the next Godplume Duke…the Youngflame clan would definitely pursue him with full power. This was a clan that was even more terrifyingly powerful than the Northmont clan of Stillwater!

Two roads lay ahead of him.

One was the road to death.

The other was the road of being pursued by the Youngflame clan.

After having been pressured to this extent…Ning actually became incomparably resolved.

BOOOM!!!

His soul became completely pure and transparent in this moment, more than it ever had been before. Ning suddenly felt as though time itself slowed down. Something that he had been struggingly this entire time to reach, and yet had never been able to…finally, he truly had reached it, and embarked on a new journey through his Grand Dao. This was…the Grand Dao of the Sword! A vast, awe-inspiring Grand Dao! In this moment, Ning felt as though he had transformed into a sword that was swimming through the entirety of the Grand Dao.

In this moment…Ning had completely reached the Grand Dao Domain level.

Generally speaking, Immortal cultivators who trained in a Dao all had the chance to reach the 'Dao Domain' level, but that was generally only true for an ordinary Dao. The Dao of the Sword, however, was one of the Grand Daos; to reach the Grand Dao Domain was far more difficult than even completely mastering an entire Dao-Path. Although Ning had reached the fifth stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] long ago, if he hadn't been placed under such enormous pressure this time, causing his heart to suddenly and completely comprehend and allow him to pass through the final barriers, it would have remained very difficult for him to reach this new level.

Within his sea of consciousness.

Ning's soul suddenly transformed into a sword, an incomparably dazzling sword. This was the sword-soul, which only a Sword Immortal who had truly reached the Grand Dao Domain level would possess. This was a fundamental change, an evolution of the soul.

Whoosh.

The sword suddenly transformed into Ji Ning's appearance…but the spirit-Ning faintly emanated with the light of a sword.

"What is the purpose of a life lived?"

"All I ask for is to be joyful."

"Kill, kill, kill."

"Exterminate all injustices!"

"Exterminate all those who deserve killing!"

"Only then will I be exultant."

"As Loose Immortals, there is no path to immortality."

"Thus…"

"Better to live passionately for a day, than to live a century while stifled."

"My sword is the joyous sword, the sword of passion, the sword which exterminates all injustices. The name of this sword technique is the [Three-Foot Sword]."

While battling against Xue Hongyi, Ning suddenly began to laugh. Laugh loudly, and with joy. "Kill, kill, kill; exterminate all ijustices, and exterminate all those who need killing! Better to live passionately for a day, than to live a century while stifled." As Ning laughed loudly, the Darknorth swords in his hands suddenly became incomparably brilliant and incomparably awe-inspiring.

Swish!

An unfathomably terrifying sword-aura instantly filled the entire hall. A dazzling streak of sword-light lashed out, tearing through the flying needles as though they were made of rotting wood, then sliced across Xue Hongyi's body.

"I, I, I…" Xue Hongyi's eyes were completely round. He had never imagined that he would end up like this. Filled to the brim with terror, even his soul began to crack and shatter under the terrifying sword-aura filling the hall.

And then…his body fell into two parts on the ground.

The sixth stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]…the Grand Dao Domain!

The [Three-Foot Sword, as the highest level sword art of the Black-White College, had six stances that were available to the public. The final three stances, however, were limited to direct, Epochal Transmission for Sword Immortals.

The first stance – Lustrous Sword-Heart

The second stance – Manifold Thistlethorns

The third stance – Sudden Sword-Light

The fourth stance – Sun in the Sky

The fifth stance – Moonlight Hiding the Sword

The sixth stance – Grand Dao Domain.

These sword stances weren't completely set in stone; for example, the first stance, Lustrous Sword-Heart, was different for each person, depending on how they comprehended it. The [Three-Foot Sword] primarily served as a guide. It guided Sword Immortals towards techniques that suited them best. Every single practitioner of the [Three-Foot Sword] was capable of executing the [Three-Foot Sword] in a way which suited them the most.

In dire straits, Ning's heart had completely merged into the Grand Dao, allowing him to reach the Grand Dao Domain level. The power of this sixth stance he had comprehended was truly incomparably frightening.

"Is this a Grand Dao Domain?" Youngflame Nong watched as a terrifying sword-aura washed over the entire hall, causing even his own soul to shudder. Youngflame Nong's face completely changed from its previous, calm and smug look. He stared at Ji Ning, this young man from a backwater clan, who seemed to have gone berserk and who had just killed Xue Hongyi with one blow. "How old is he? He actually…actually has already reached the Grand Dao Domain level? And in the Dao of the Sword, the most offensive of Daos?!"

Youngflame Nong suddenly felt jealousy in his heart; why couldn't he be this talented? Why did this sort of talent had to fall onto a rustic youth like this one?

"Grand Dao Domain?"

"This Dao of the Sword…"

Yu Wei, Adept Vastriver, and Ninelotus were in a state of shock. The sword-aura that filled the hall…all of them could feel the resoluteness, the sharpness, the indomitableness emanating from it.

The sword was a sharp weapon. The heart of a Sword Immortal…only one whose heart was truly as sharp, resolute, and indomitable as a sword would be capable of truly comprehending the exquisiteness of the Dao of the Sword.

When the sword emerged, there was no room for regret.

When the sword emerged, it could not be blocked.

This was what it meant to be a Sword Immortal!

"KILL!" Ning wielded his twin swords in his hands. His body suddenly increased dramatically as he transformed into a thirty meter tall giant as he simultaneously executed his divine ability, [Starseizing Hand] as well. In this moment, the sword-light in Ning's hands had reached an awe-inspiringly powerful level. But Xiangliu Fang just let out a furious growl, smashing out with his palm, which swept forward like a dark stormcloud as the giant serpents that were his fingers ravenously bit down.

BOOOOM!

An explosive sound rang out. The flesh on Xiangliu Fang's serpent-hand split open, and fresh blood sprayed everywhere as divine power lashed everywhere.

Ning was sent flying nback as well, blood spewing out from his mouth. In this moment, Ning understood…that although his power had increased dramatically, compared with Xiangliu Fang, who possessed the power of a peak Loose Immortal, the difference in power was simply too great. The opponent was able to defeat him with just one hand.

"Ji Ning."

"Senior apprentice-brother."

Northson, Yu Wei, and Ninelotus all called out in alarm.

While being knocked backwards, Ning's eyes became filled with madness. That black loop, which had been tucked into his bracer the entire time, suddenly appeared in his palm. This was the treasure which Daoist Threelives had personally forged; of Ning's two important life-saving treasures, it was the only one capable of an active attack.

Ning had no other choices left to him.

"GO!" Ning waved his hand, sending the black loop flying out.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 26 – Killing Youngflame Nong

The black loop seemed quite ordinary, but as Xiangliu Fang struck out with his massive, dark, cloud-like hand, with those giant, serpentine fingers…the black loop actually passed straight through it. The giant Fiendgod's hand wasn't harmed at all; it was as though the black loop was composed of a different type of force, as though it was illusory. It passed straight through.

"What's this?" Xiangliu Fang was completely flabbergasted.

"Kill him." Youngflame Nong's eyes were filled with a murderous intent as well, but then…he too stared in amazement at the black loop which had appeared.

A seemingly ordinary black loop, but it caused both Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang to feel nervousness, because they had no idea what sort of a treasure it was.

One of them was an ancient Fiendgod with vast experience. The other was all-but-guaranteed to be the next Godplume Duke, who similarly had seen many things. The two of them had seen countless treasures…but they had never seen a treasure like this before. In fact, they couldn't even tell what it was.

"This black loop easily passed through Xiangliu Fang's massive, Fiendgod hand…and didn't injure it in the slightest?" Mu Northson was completely awestruck as well.

It was like an ordinary person being 'struck' by a ghost; the ghost would pass straight through the person. When Xiangliu Fang and the sphere collided, the sphere shot straight through him. But Xiangliu Fang, as a Fiendgod, had an incredibly powerful level of divine power; if it had been a ghost or something like a ghost, it would have been shattered.

"What queer thing is this?" NInelotus was amazed as well. She came from the Dongyan clan, but had never heard of such a treasure.

"Eh?" Adept Vastriver had long ago awakened fragments of his former memories, but he felt puzzled as well.

Yu Wei originally had a look of puzzlement, but then she revealed a look of astonishment. "Can this be…how can it…"

The black loop flew into the air directly above Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang, and as it did, it suddenly emanated a soft, hazy glow, causing it to appear dreamlike and illusory.

"Shatter," Xiangliu Fang howled angrily. A long awl appeared in his hand, filled with a boundless, savage aura, and Xiangliu Fang stabbed the black loop viciously with his awl.

"Protect me." Youngflame Nong also felt that this black loop was extremely bizarre. He had already taken out that leaf-like Dao-seal earlier, in order to protect against the black-armored golem's sudden ambush if necessary. He now shattered it right away. Instantly, a hazy golden aura covered him with a tight defensive aura. "This would be able to withstand for a few moments against even a full-strength attack from a Loose Immortal."

Whoosh.

Xiangliu Fang's ferocious stab…missed. It was as though the black loop didn't exist at all; or perhaps, it existed on a completely different plane.

The black loop continued to emanate that hazy light. Suddenly, an invisible, devouring ripple swept out.

"This is…"

Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang's faces both changed dramatically. They could both sense that invisible devouring force…and it was aimed directly at their souls.

"AHH!! NO—!" Youngflame Nong's face turned incomparably savage and terrified. He let out a hideous howl…and then, his soul left his body. Twisting and distorting, it was forcibly drawn into that black loop.

Youngflame Nong was a peak Wanxiang Adept, and ever since he was young, he had access to an extremely high level visualization technique; his soul was comparable to a Primal Daoist's by now, and so naturally it could almost take physical form. Ning and everyone else personally witnessed his twisting, distorting soul howl in anguish as it was drawn into the black loop.

"What sort of treasure is this? How can it absorb my soul? How can…how can…how can this be my end? How could I have died to this Ji Ning? Is my soul about to be destroyed? Ji Ning, Ji Ning, spare me, spare me!" Youngflame Nong's soul let out a soundless screech, continuing to twist and distort as it was drawn deeper and deeper within.

"I, I…" Xiangliu Fang was struggling in a berserk manner. And yet…his powerful Fiendgod's soul was still being forcibly ripped out from his Fiendgod body. As a Primal-level Fiendgod who was capable of creating a clone of himself, it was clear that his soul had long ago completely merged with his Fiendgod body, fusing into one. And yet, it was still being forcibly ripped out right now.

It was an enormous soul, and it was letting out earth-shaking bellows that shook the entire hall…but it, too, was being drawn into the black loop.

And so, just like that…

Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang, despite their protective treasures or powerful divine bodies…had their souls forcibly devoured by this terrifying, bizarre treasure.

Crack. The black loop let out a clear sound, like a piece of ice breaking. Instantly, it shattered apart, dissipating and melting in midair, leaving nothing behind at all. Even Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang's souls had completely vanished.

Slump.

Youngflame Nong's body remained standing there for a moment, eyes completely blank, and then his body slumped gently to the ground. The mighty Xiangliu Fang remained standing for a moment as well, but then he too collapsed to the ground, no longer breathing. This ancient Fiendgod, who had been born in the Fiendgod Era, then been enslaved by the Youngflame clan…finally died on this day.

"Youngflame Nong and Xiangliu Fang just…just…just died, like that?" Northson stared with huge eyes. He cleared his throat repeatedly, completely awestruck.

"Dead. This…this…" Adept Vastriver was completely awestruck as well.

Ninelotus and Yu Wei both looked at the two collapsed, lifeless figures as well; one master, the other a servant. They felt as though they were in a dream.

Xiangliu Fang had been so powerful! He was an ancient Fiendgod! As for Youngflame Nong, his background and status were both mighty as well; earlier, when dealing with the monstrous Dao-soldiers, he had taken out the likes of the 'Lock' scroll and the 'Polaris Starshifter' treasure. They had watched him do this and had realized how truly extraordinary the next Godplume Duke truly was, and how many protective items he had. But the end result? They had both died.

Ji Ning, who had been knocked flying backwards and had vomited out blood, revealed a look of astonishment as well. He had never imagined that the black loop would be this powerful.

When he had originally selected the black loop, the giant yellow bear had said to him, "Ji Ning, to tell the truth, I originally didn't want to give you this treasure. However, after you grow more powerful, it will no longer be of much use to you, as by the time you become a Primal, you'll be able to carry around this underwater estate with you. The Wanxiang Adept period…this is the period in an Immortal cultivator's life when he is most susceptible to dying. This treasure was personally forged by my master; although he did so casually, it is more than enough to keep you alive. You can consider it a second life….but it can only protect you once."

"A treasure personally forged by Daoist Threelives…even though he made it in a casual way, it was simplicity itself for it to devour the souls of a Primal Fiendgod and a Wanxiang-level noble of a major clan." Ning couldn't help but sigh in astonishment to himself.

He only knew that this black loop was meant for the sole purpose of drawing in and eradicating souls…but up till now, he had no idea how powerful it was.

Ning was only amazed for a second. In the next instant, however, he understood that he had embarked on a path of no return.

Actually, ever since Youngflame Nong had determined that Ning was a descendant of the Yuchi clan and moved to kill him, Ning had already embarked on a path of no return. Either he would be killed by Youngflame Nong, or he would kill Youngflame Nong. These were his only two options! But by killing Youngflame Nong, someone who was virtually guaranteed to be the next Godplume Duke, and whose background was incredibly astonishing…

Youngflame Nong's status within his clan was similar to Ning's former status in the Ji clan of West Prefecture City; Ning had both the Lord Prefect and his own father supporting him. For it to be all but determined that Youngflame Nong would be the next Godplume Duke meant that he definitely had an incredibly powerful figure supporting him as well!

Youngflame Nong had died. If only for emotional reasons alone, that powerful figure would come to seek revenge! Aside from saving face for the Youngflame clan, revenge for Youngflame Nong would also be an important reason!

"Hahaha…" Ning actually began to laugh loudly. With a wave of his hand, he sent out a streak of earthfire, which burnt the corpse of Xue Hongyi to ash. He then collected the magic treasures which Xue Hongyi had left behind. Xue Hongyi had that Immortal-ranked magic treasure; naturally, since Ning was about to flee for his life, he would want to carry as many treasures with him as possible.

Whoosh.

With a single step, Ning moved to Youngflame Nong and the Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang's corpses. A streak of earthfire burned Youngflame Nong's corpses to gray ash, but the earthfire was completely unable to damage Xiangliu Fang's Fiendgod body at all. This caused Ning to frown.

"Come in here." He simply stored the entire Fiendgod body into his storage-type magic treasure. Then, with a wave of his hand, Ning collected the key to the Immortal estate.

Ning quickly began to bind it. The key to the Immortal estate was merely a talisman; binding it was quite simple.

The nearby Northson, Yu Wei, Ninelotus, and Adept Vastriver just watched as Ning burned the corpses of Xue Hongyi and Youngflame Nong, then took away all their magic treasures. All of them were still in a state of shock.

"Senior apprentice-brother, you, you…you killed Youngflame Nong?" Northson's mouth flapped open a few times. He was still speechless.

More than ten or so Zifu Disciples were still alive. They all watched Ning intently, especially those two female Zifu-level maidservants who served Youngflame Nong.

Swish!

Ning's gaze flickered past them. Suddenly, the air was filled with sword-ki, which howled downwards, instantly killing all of the Deathsworn.

"If the Deathsworn remain alive, they would only reveal everything which happened here." Ning knew very well that these Deathsworn were completely loyal to Youngflame Nong. They had watched everything happen; once the Youngflame clan found these Deathsworn, everything would have been exposed.

"Ji Ning." Ninelotus had a look of panic on her face. Tears actually began to appear. "How could you have killed Youngflame Nong. This…next…this…the Youngflame clan is definitely going to pursue and kill you. There's no way…no way to stop the Youngflame clan. He was one of the Four Dukelings of the imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty. He was extremely famous…for the sake of their reputation alone, the Youngflame clan would spare no expense in pursuing and killing you."

Ning looked towards Ninelotus. "I had no choice. I only had two options; to let him kill me, or to kill him! Either he died or I died. What should I have done?"

Ninelotus was so frantic, she began to cry. Previously, she had been trying her best to prevent hatred from developing between Ning and Youngflame Nong, but in the end…the result was even worse than what she had feared. Youngflame Nong, the exalted heir-presumptive to the position of Godplume Duke of the Youngflame clan…had died.

"No need to panic," Ning said with cold calmness. "I killed Youngflame Nong, but I trust that none of you will voluntarily report me. There's no way the Youngflame clan would be able to ascertain, within such a short period of time, who the killer was. They will need to spend time to investigate. I'll immediately send you all out of this Immortal estate. By then, you can return to your own homes, to the Dongyan clan and to the Black-White College of Stillwater City. Nothing which happened here had anything to do with you. I was the killer; the Youngflame clan won't act against the rest of you. But by the time they've fully investigated this matter, I'll have already arranged an escape plan and executed it."

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, you are wrong." Yu Wei was frantic and restless as well, and she said hurriedly, "According to legends, some extremely powerful figures, such as Celestial Immortals, are completely capable of causing a temporal inversion, resulting in scenes from the past being replayed in the present. From this, they can discover right away that you were the culprit."

Ning instantly felt his heart clench.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 27 – Traveling Alone

"Temporal inversion?" Ning instantly realized that the situation was far more dire than he had thought! He had previously believed that after having killed Youngflame Nong, he would have some time before the Youngflame clan discovered him, which would allow him to arrange for his clan, the Ji clan, to escape. But now, it seemed, time was far too tight.

"Everyone, we have no time. I'll send you all out now. Go to a safe location. Because of me, all of you have been implicated." In order to save time, Ning began to converse mentally with them.

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning," Yu Wei sent hurriedly, "You don't need to worry about our safety; the Grand Xia Dynasty has its rules, and the Youngflame clan cannot simply do what it wishes. As long as we return to the Black-White College, we will be fine; the Grand Xia Dynasty's laws state that violence is forbidden within its commandery cities. In addition, we weren't the ones to kill Youngflame Nong, and so the Youngflame clan would have no excuse to act against us. Right now, you need to worry about yourself."

"You have two main options right now."

"The first is to flee. Flee to a place where the Youngflame clan cannot reach you and take revenge, such as other lesser or major worlds. Another option would to be to flee straight to the main headquarters of the Raindragon Guard. The Raindragon Guard remains the most powerful military force within the Grand Xia Dynasty; no matter how daring the Youngflame clan is, they wouldn't dare to act against you while you are with the Raindragon Guard."

"The second option is to go up against them head-on. Go straight to the imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty; that's the capital city for the entirety of the Grand Xia Empire, and the most supreme clans and schools of the entire Grand Xia Empire reside there. You can first go to the local Raindragon Guard branch; that place will be absolutely safe. Afterwards, you can participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Now that you have mastered a Grand Dao Domain, you will definitely be able to perform with brilliant splendor at the Conclave. Given your talent, there will be quite a few powers which will want to draw you into their fold. By then, you can join a power that is opposed to the Youngflame clan."

"The Youngflame clan is powerful, but if you look at the Grand Xia Dynasty as a whole, you'll still find a few organizations which are more powerful than them and which hold vast grudges against them. Some of the grudges can be described as 'mortal enmity', and there are more than a few; after all, in this vast world which the imperial clan of the Grand Xia Dynasty has unified, it is normal for the largest, most powerful clans, sects, and churches to have their disputes and grudges against each other. For example, the 'Kindwater' 1 clan is even more powerful than the Youngflame clan 2, and these two clans have felt mortal enmity towards each other ever since the Fiendgod Era. After countless generations of struggle, both sides have even lost Celestial Immortals. One leader after another has been assassinated by the other side as well. Given that you've killed Youngflame Nong, powers like the Kindwater clan would definitely be willing to pull you into their fold. By relying on powerful clans such as them, you can continue to fight against the Youngflame clan."

"Two options; one to flee, the other to resist. These are the only two ideas I'm able to come up with in such a short period of time," Yu Wei sent.

Ning had previously been planning on fleeing. He hadn't expected that Yu Wei would be able to provide yet another clear path for him.

Right!

The Youngflame clan ranked in the top ten clans of the Grand Xia Dynasty…but that meant there were nine other clans on par with them! The more powerful an organization was, the more fights it would get into over resources; this was extremely common.

"As for your clan, the Ji clan," Yu Wei sent hurriedly, "For now, you can have your clansmen lay low; you can also have some of the elites be sent to Stillwater City or the imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty. Murder and fighting is forbidden in commandery cities; if anyone dares to act in such a way, they will definitely suffer reprisals from the Grand Xia Dynasty."

"Although the Youngflame clan might be able to arrange for some wanted criminals to go commit suicide attacks…how powerful could these wanted criminals possibly be? These wanted criminals are all completely lawless; the more powerful they are, the less willing they are to do anyone's bidding, especially those Fiendgods and Loose Immortals. It will be very hard for the Youngflame clan to invite those truly terrifying figures to intervene."

"The only option is for the Youngflame clan to send its own Loose Immortals out to annihilate your Ji clan. Even if they escape blame by claiming that the Loose Immortal did it of his own free will…that Loose Immortal would definitely die!"

Yu Wei continued, sending mentally, "No matter what, so long as a tribe can save its elites, in the future, it will flourish again. You are the genius which the Ji clan has finally produced after countless years; you need to protect yourself."

"Thank you, senior apprentice-sister." Ning had some plans of his own, but upon hearing Yu Wei's suggestions, he instantly felt as though a bigger picture had been revealed to him, giving him some new ideas as well. And, Ning also had a feeling…as though Yu Wei seemed to have quite a clear understanding of the most powerful, supreme forces of the entire Grand Xia Dynasty.

"Ji Ning," Ninelotus sent hurriedly, "Come with me. I'll take you to see the Forefather and have him send you out from this major world of the Grand Xia Dynasty. As for the Ji clan, I'll come up with a way to protect some of their elites. In the future, when you are more powerful and come back, we can have the Ji clan flourish again."

"Senior apprentice-brother, are you preparing to flee? I'll go with you. My master is close to the end of her life; she's going to enter her final, closed-door meditation. She's already taught me everything she can. I have nothing holding me back. Going with you and fleeing together is bound to be an exciting life," Northson sent.

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, protect yourself; only then will you have a chance to turn the tables in the future." Adept Vastriver looked towards Ning.

Ning laughed. Then, suddenly…Ning's gaze fell upon Ninelotus. He sent mentally, "Ninelotus."

"Yes?" Ninelotus looked at Ning.

"I killed Youngflame Nong. Regardless of whether I choose to flee to another world, or if I choose to join another supreme clan or alliance…I'll be unable to remain within Stillwater Commandery. I'll be a homeless wanderer…would you be willing to go with me?" Ning looked towards Ninelotus, eyes filled with hope.

"I, I…" Ninelotus hesitated.

She could imagine the path which Ning would walk down in the future. It would be a path of incomparable danger. Should she accompany him on that wandering path?

She felt an impulsive urge to agree. To wander to the edges of the world with Ning, to share life and death together.

But then she thought of her clan. She was the next leader of the Dongyan clan. She couldn't possibly just go wandering off with Ning to the ends of the earth endlessly. No one could know how long the wandering would last.

"Ninelotus." Ning could sense her hesitation. He couldn't help but feel a bit of pain in his heart.

He knew that this request of his was a bit excessive. Only…in this moment, after having embarked on this path, Ning truly wanted for someone to walk it with him. This arduous Immortal path…if someone could share it with him and share its burdens with him…Ning truly hoped that someone would be Ninelotus.

"I'm sorry."

Ninelotus' eyes filled with tears as she looked at Ning. "Ji Ning, I suddenly understand now. I simply can't wander the world by your side; I can't share life and death with you. The Forefather's words were right. To be Dao-Companions…that means to be willing to die for someone. Dao-Companions…if Immortals or Buddhas block your path, for the sake of bringing your Dao-Companion back, you would be willing to murder Immortals or annihilate Buddhas. But I can't do it! I truly can't do it. I have my own path to follow and I…I don't want to give up my own path for you."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Tears were streaming down Ninelotus' face.

"No need to say anything further."

Ning's eyes were glimmering with unshed tears as well. "It's my fault for being too greedy. I'm embarking on a path of certain danger, and I'll definitely be fighting against the Youngflame clan for countless years to come. I went too far in what I asked for. I shouldn't dare to drag you in and implicate you as well."

"From now on…you are you."

"I am me."

"This Immortal path…it's enough for me to walk it alone."

Ning pointed into the distance. Whoosh! Instantly, a watery, rippling pattern appeared, followed by a tunnel. Outside the tunnel was the Skyrove Mountains of the Grand Xia Dynasty's major world. Ning immediately said, "Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei, senior apprentice-brother Vastriver, junior apprentice-brother Northson, and Ninelotus…you can leave."

"Senior apprentice-brother, I told you that I'm going to go adventuring with you. I have nothing holding me back. What the hell do I have to be afraid of?" Northson spoke with great urgency.

"This is an extremely dangerous path I am embarking on, junior apprentice-brother Northson…"

"Do you think I'm too weak for it?" Northson ground his teeth.

"Right. You are too weak. You can't help me; instead, you'd slow me down." Ning gritted his own teeth as well as he responded.

The nearby Yu Wei spoke out to urge Northson. "Junior apprentice-brother Northson, don't be stubborn; this isn't the time to show your loyalty. Your strength truly is a bit too low."

Northson looked at Ning, his eyes turning slightly red. "Senior apprentice-brother, after my mother died, I no longer had any kinsmen left. After I joined the school, you became the closest person in my life. Long ago, I started to view you as I would an actual, biological brother. It is true that I am a bit weak, and I know that you said those word because you don't want me to be pulled into this. I'm not going to say anything else for now, except…"

"When I go back, I'm going to train hard. And if you die, I'll definitely take revenge for you."

Ning's eyes turned red. He hadn't imagined…he truly hadn't imagined that Northson, in his heart, viewed Ning as he would a real brother.

"Hahaha, don't worry. I won't die that easily." Tears in his eyes, Ning laughed loudly, then said, "Stop dawdling. Hurry up and leave."

Ninelotus felt all the more agony in her heart at this moment.

Even Northson had been willing to throw everything away, but her? She truly wanted to do the same, to throw everything away, to discard her clan, to roam the world by Ning's side. But…she continued to hesitate. She just couldn't throw it all away.

"I'm sorry." Tears fell down Ninelotus' face. "Stay alive. You have to stay alive." And then, she turned her head and flew through the corridor to the Skyrove Mountains on the other side.

Northson, Yu Wei, and Adept Vastriver all understood. Dao-Companions, Dao-Companions…what were Dao-Companions? Only those who would never abandon each other, even at their most critical moments, could be considered Dao-Companions. Ninelotus' departure, and the words she had just spoken…they caused the three to understand that in the future, most likely Ji Ning and Ninelotus would truly embark on completely separate Immortal paths.

"Be careful," Northson said.

"Stay alive." Yu Wei looked at Ning.

"You have to stay alive," Adept Vastriver instructed as well.

And then, the three flew through the corridor, arriving within the Skyrove Mountains. The corridor then shut.

The Skyrove Mountains.

They had returned to the world of the Grand Xia Dynasty. Ninelotus, Yu Wei, Northson, and Adept Vastriver all turned their heads to stare at the corridor. Through it, they could vaguely make out that solitary, lonely figure within the main hall on the other side.

From today on…Ning was going to have to fight by himself.

Ninelotus stared through the tunnel. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop her tears from continuing to fall.

The choice she had made today was an incomparably agonizing choice for her.

She wasn't able to abandon her tribe. She had her own dreams. She simply couldn't make herself discard everything for Ning's sake.

Yu Wei, Northson, and Adept Vastriver didn't say anything. This was because they, too, understood how rare it was for there to be a pair of Dao-Companions who would truly share life and death together, who would never leave each other, and whose lives would become as one. In fact, many so-called Dao-Companions would actually end up hating each other and becoming enemies; it wasn't uncommon for them to end up fighting over treasures and killing each other.

To truly be together until death parted them…this was far too rare. Ninelotus had too many other things she cared about. She couldn't throw them all away.

Whoosh. The corridor swung shut, and they could no longer see to the other side.

"Let's go." Northson gritted his teeth.

"Let's go."

"I'm going back to my clan."

Ninelotus returned by herself to the Dongyan clan, while Northson, Adept Vastriver, and Yu Wei returned to the Black-White College.

Within the palace.

"From today onwards, I shall traverse my Immortal path alone. It's for the best, actually. By myself, I'll be much more carefree," Ning said with a laugh.

"Master, you still have us." Little Qing raised her serpentine head and called out to him.

Ning looked towards the Azure Skysnake, then towards Uncle White, who had followed him silently this entire time. He felt a warm feeling in his heart. "Right. I still have you two. Little Qing, Uncle White, let's go. Let's go and meet the monsters of this Immortal estate."

1. The character for 'Kind', Zhuan, is a reference to mythological Emperor Zhuanxu, one of the legendary Five Emperors of prehistoric China

2. The character for 'Flame', Yan, is a reference to mythological Yan Emperor, the Flame Emperor

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 28 – The Thousand Year Pact

Within the Immortal estate.

The clan commanded by Immortal Witchsui, along with the many Seawave Dao-soldiers commanded by Immortal Duohe, continued to wait on the outside of the fifth palace. Although they were enraged and despairing, they still hoped…hoped that a miracle might occur.

"Monster clans." Suddenly, a voice rang out, and along with it, waves of divine will rolled out, instantly encompassing all of the monstrous Dao-soldiers.

"Eh?" All of the monsters looked over. Even Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe were shocked.

A few hundred kilometers away, there was a fur-clad youth, with a little azure serpent coiled around his arm and a large, snowy white dog by his side. In the air around them hovered ancient, plain, unadorned wooden sticks. It was the Fuxi Staff Formation; space within a hundred kilometers of that human was completely locked, and there would be no way to teleport inside.

"You?" Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe immediately recognized him. Amongst the group of humans, there was indeed a fur-clad human who had a giant snowy white dog.

"The key to the Immortal estate is now in my hands." Ning's voice rang out by the ears of every single monster. His divine sense had spread to a thousand kilometers; naturally, he was able to send his voice to each and every one of them.

"Open."

Ning held the key to the Immortal estate in his hands. He sent his will forth, and next to him a corridor appeared; it was the corridor to the Skyrove Mountains in the outside world. Actually, just now, Ning had already used the key to leave and go to the Skyrove Mountains, then re-entered, having Little Qing lead him and Uncle White in a teleportation. Little Qing was actually far more powerful now than she had been in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains; for near-distance blinks, she could bring others along with her. The main thing was that Ning had yet to bind the various branches; if he emerged directly from within the Witchriver Palace, he would have been surrounded by the monsters.

"The key to the Immortal estate."

"He is holding the key to the Immortal estate in his hands."

"That's the outside world, the smell of the outside world." Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe swept forward with their divine senses, and were even able to extend them into the corridor leading to the outside world. "That's another world!"

Immortal Witchsui, Immortal Duohe, and the many monsters all stared towards Ning with even more blazingly desirous gazes. Although they were suspicious as to why the other human was no longer holding the key, the truth remained that this man before them was holding it now. They couldn't be bothered to over-analyze it; they knew that the appearance of this youth represented a desire by this youth to negotiate with them.

Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe were actually considering whether or not they should try to seize the key to the Immortal estate. However, their earlier, repeated failures caused them to no longer dare to act rashly.

"Don't try anything. I've already set up a formation around me, and the corridor is already open; I can leave at any time. In addition, even if you truly were to attack, you wouldn't be able to kill me," Ning said. He had that other protective magic treasure, and also the magic treasures which Youngflame Nong had left behind. His words were completely true.

Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe, as well as the other monsters, all calmed down. They no longer dared to make any more gambles.

"What do you want?" Immotal Witchsui asked.

"I offended a powerful a tribe, the Youngflame clan, and the clan is going to come act against me. They might even act against my tribe." Ning's divine sense was sending a message to every single monster. "My tribe is located in a commandery city of the Grand Xia Dynasty, the City of Ten Thousand Swords. I wish for you, the monsters of this Immortal estate world, to go to the City of Ten Thousand Swords and protect my tribe. Protect them for a thousand years; after that period of time, I'll release you and give you your freedom. As for the key to the Immortal estate? I can just give it to you."

The key to the Immortal estate wasn't of much use to Ning. There was no way he could carry the Witchriver Immortal Estate with him; what was he supposed to do with it? In addition, he had the underwater estate, an even finer estate left behind by Daoist Threelives. As for the treasures within the Witchriver Immortal Estate? The Dao Repository and the Treasure Vault had already been looted clean.

"Protect them for a thousand years?" Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe, along with the tens of thousands of monsters, were both amazed and delighted.

Although a thousand years was a fairly long period of time, monsters had extremely long lifespans to begin with. To simply protect a tribe for a thousand years…they would then be able to go to the wider, vast world. They would even receive the key to the Immortal estate. They didn't even dare to imagine something like this previously. They had been preparing to be fleeced, and had even been willing to hand over part of their Dao-armors as their offer for peace.

But Ning had no desire for the Dao-armors; wearing the Dao-armors, these monsters would be ten times or even tens of times more powerful. That was what he wanted; them to be powerful!

"Your tribe is located in the 'City of Ten Thousand Swords' of the Grand Xia Dynasty? Based on what I know, the Grand Xia Dynasty is extremely strict in its prohibition against battles within commandery cities. If anyone dares to fight within one, they will suffer pursuit and apprehension by the Grand Xia Dynasty. This 'Youngflame' clan that wishes to act against your tribe, they shouldn't dare to actually attack your city, should they?" Immortal Duohe asked.

Although they had always been trapped within here, they had passed down records regarding the Grand Xia Dynasty's world from generation to generation, and so they knew some of the most basic things.

"Correct, they won't dare to launch an actual attack. However, if they were to send some wanted criminals or some Deathsworn to attack my tribe…" Ning sent to them, "These criminals and Deathsworn would most likely be at the Wanxiang level or the Primal Daoist level. Loose Immortals? The chances of there being one of them should be very, very low. Celestial Immortals? That's even less likely."

To enter a commandery city of the Grand Xia Dynasty and launch an attack was a challenge and affront to the entire Dynasty. Anyone who did so would be killed without question.

For the sake of Youngflame Nong, who was already dead…would they really be willing to sacrifice a Loose Immortal, just for the sake of giving vent to their rage and killing a backwater tribe? The chances were quite low. As for sacrificing a Celestial Immortal? That was virtually impossible.

It must be understood that every single Celestial Immortal was considered one of the true foundations for a clan. A single word from a Celestial Immortal could even cause the clan leader to be changed.

If Ning were to become a Celestial Immortal, he would become one of the figures capable of influencing the entire Grand Xia Dynasty; even the entire Youngflame clan would treat him with courtesy. If it had been a Celestial Immortal who had killed Youngflame Nong, most likely the Youngflame clan would just go negotiate with him, rather than pursue and attack him. Thus, there was no way the Youngflame clan would be so stupid as to send a Celestial Immortal into a commandery city and begin a slaughter.

"We know a little bit about the Grand Xia Empire's world. It is already incredible for the supreme clans to have even just one or two Celestial Immortals; there is no way they would let them end up as wanted criminals." Immortal Duohe and Witchsui exchanged a glance, then made up their minds.

"We have decided to agree to your request. For a thousand years, we shall be stationed at that commandery city of the Grand Xia Empire, the 'City of Ten Thousand Swords', and protect your clan. Given our power, even if supreme Loose Immortals come, we should be able to easily defeat them. However, if a Celestial Immortal comes, there is nothing we can do."

"If a Celestial Immortal attacks, I'll just accept it," Ning sent. "Monsters, all of you need to now swear an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. I shall do the same."

"Fine."

"That's how it should be done."

The monsters were indeed afraid that Ning would later go back on his word; it was best if they all swore oaths to the Dao of the Heavens.

Soon, with Ning personally choosing the words to the oaths, both came to an agreement on what to say, then swore the oaths.

Tens of thousands of monsters simultaneously swore an oath to the Dao of the Heavens. Ripples of power from the Dao of the Heavens descended upon them, and through his divine sense, Ning could clearly see every single monster making the oath. These thirty thousand-plus monsters were the elites of this entire Immortal estate world; more than ninety nine percent of the Diremonster Immortal cultivators were present.

Oaths to the Dao of the Heavens were useless against mortals and useless against ordinary monsters, but upon monsters or humans embarking upon the Immortal path, it would have tremendous effect! These monstrous Dao-soldiers were all at the Zifu level at the very least. The thirty thousand-plus monsters, along with two Loose Immortals, all swore their oaths to the Dao of the Heavens, and Ning, in turn, was no longer worried about them going back on their word.

Naturally, he swore an oath as well.

"There is no time to waste," Ning sent mentally. "That expert from the Youngflame clan might even be a Celestial Immortal, and he will soon reach the Witchriver Immortal Estate. Once he comes, he might annihilate all of you. We need to immediately leave."

"What?!" Immortal Witchsui, Immortal Duohe, and the others were all shocked.

The two Immortals were quite decisive; in the face of an opportunity that would change the destinies of all the monsters in the Immortal estate world, they immediately ordered the necessary arrangements be made. "Daoist Zhenbao, Daoist Witchaxle, each of you go lead a thousand Dao-soldiers and gather all of our clansmen within the Immortal estate world, then lead them to the City of Ten Thousand Swords."

"This is a map of the Stillwater Commandery of the Grand Xia Empire. There is a mark here for the City of Ten Thousand Swords." Ning flew over as well. Given that they had all sworn oaths to the Dao of the Heavens, they were naturally now in the same boat.

"We'll lead these soldiers to head there right away," Immortal Witchsui and Immortal Duohe both said. "Everyone, get in." The two Immortals each produced a giant sack.

Whooooooosh.

Not a single one of the many monstrous Dao-soldiers resisted. All of them allowed themselves to be drawn into the sacks, leaving behind just Immortal Zhenbao, Immortal Witchaxle, and the two thousand Dao-soldiers under their command.

"Let's go."

Whoosh. A corridor appeared, leading to the Skyrove Mountains.

Ning, Immortal Witchsui, Immortal Duohe, and Daoist Witchaxle all flew out.

They appeared within the gorge in the Skyrove Mountains. Even the aura and the smell here was different compared to the Immortal estate world; this was an aura of a vast, endless world, the smell of an entire, major world.

"It's different."

"It really is different."

"This is the Grand Xia Dynasty's world." Immortal Witchsui, Immortal Duohe, and the others were all stunned and excited.

"This is the key to the Immortal estate." Ning handed the key directly to Daoist Witchaxle. "I'm giving it to you now. Immediately lead the remaining monsters to quickly depart from the Immortal estate world; if you delay, the situation might change."

"Right." Daoist Witchaxle accepted the key, then immediately generated a corridor, returning to the Immortal estate and then shutting the corridor off.

"Let's go," Ning said. "The City of Ten Thousand Swords is six hundred thousand kilometers to the north."

"Let's go."

Immortal Duohe, that powerful old fellow, personally executed a teleportation, bringing Immortal Witchsui, Ning, Little Qing, and Uncle White with him in a long-distance teleport.

Whoosh.

Ning realized that the surrounding environment had changed. He took a careful look, then said, "We were slightly off; the City of Ten Thousand Swords is roughly twenty six thousand kilometers to our southeast."

"Then I'll just teleport us again." The shorter the distance, the easier a teleportation was. Immortal Duohe easily teleported them a short distance.

In the middle of the air, surrounded by clouds, at a location just a few hundred kilometers outside the City of Ten Thousand Swords. A spatial ripple appeared, then from within it emerged Immortal Duohe, Immortal Witchsui, and a fur-clad youth, a little azure serpent, and a large, snowy white hound.

"Here we are." Ning stared towards the distance. His Fiendgod-like eyesight could easily see the distant commandery city, just a few hundred kilometers away. This caused Ning to let out a sigh of relief; previously, when he had been chatting with the monsters in the Immortal estate, he had done so through divine sense, so as to save as much time as possible. He had been worried about taking too much time and unforseen things happening.

Ning pointed towards the distant commandery city. "That city is the City of Ten Thousand Swords, the city which the monster clans of the Immortal estate must protect for a thousand years."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 29 – Patriarch Arcanum

Within the City of Ten Thousand Swords. Inside a large, secluded, palace.

"What? A tribe even more powerful than the Northmont clan of Stillwater?" Ji Ninefire, Ji Truekeep, and Granny Shadow were completely petrified.

"This is Immortal Duohe, while this is Immortal Witchsui; both are extremely powerful Loose Immortals." After describing the dangerous situation, Ji Ning moved to introduce the two by his side.

"Loose Immortals?"

Ninfire and the others felt dazed. Legendary, exalted Loose Immortals were before them…and two of them at that.

"They will command thirty thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers to protect our City of Ten Thousand Swords," Ning said. "They are all wearing Dao-armors, and so with these two Loose Immortals in command of thirty thousand monstrous Dao-soldiers…even if tens of Loose Immortals come, they should be able to withstand them. They will protect our city for a thousand years. Unless a Celestial Immortal or someone with a Celestial Immortal's power attacks us, our city should be completely safe."

Ninefire, Truekeep, and Granny Shadow were cultivators, after all; despite still being stunned, they quickly regained their equilibrium.

"You three can decide what arrangements need to be made for the tribe," Ning said. "You know more about these things than me anyhow."

"Don't worry." Truekeep nodded. "With such a powerful army of Dao-soldiers stationed here, and with this being a commandery city of the Grand Xia Empire that is under special protection from the Raindragon Guard as well…anyone who dares attack will be pursued throughout the entire Grand Xia Dynasty! No matter how powerful the Youngflame clan is, they wouldn't possibly be willing to have one of their legendary Celestial Immortals become a wanted criminal."

Celestial Immortals were figures of legends. It wasn't even known for certain whether or not the Northmont clan of Stillwater had a Celestial Immortal. As for the Black-White College, in its countless years of existence, it had produced countless Loose Immortals, but only a single Celestial Immortal.

"Little Qing, Uncle White, the two of you shall stay here for now. Here is a talisman." Ning handed a talisman to the human-shaped Uncle White. "If you notice that the talisman has shattered, then teleport directly towards Serpentwing Lake and reunite with me. If the talisman remains whole, then you are absolutely not permitted to come."

"Right." Little Qing and Uncle White both nodded. At a critical moment like this, they wouldn't let him down.

"Ning, son, be careful," Uncle White instructed.

Ning nodded and smiled.

"I'll leave now. After this departure, I probably won't be able to return for a very long period of time." Ning looked towards Ninefire, Truekeep, and Granny shadow. "It was I who brought this calamity upon the tribe. In the future, I'll make up for it."

"Don't say such things!" Ninefire scolded in a low voice. "Remember, you have to protect yourself. Only if you are alive shall our Ji clan have a chance to flourish." For a tribe to produce a genius like Ning was completely a matter of luck.

"I'm leaving now." Ning immediately used a Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal. Whoosh. He disappeared from within the hall.

In the air above Brightheart Island of Serpentwing Lake. A ripple in the air could be seen, and then Ning emerged.

"Autumn Leaf." Upon landing, Ning immediately sent his voice out, calling towards Autumn Leaf. Soon, a light gray-robed Autumn Leaf emerged. She looked at Ning in surprise and delight. "Young master."

"You can no longer stay on Brightheart Island. Hurry up and have everyone on the island move away to the City of Ten Thousand Swords. As for you, you need to leave immediately," Ning instructed.

Autumn Leaf was stunned. "What, what happened?" Brightheart Island had long ago become her home; she had poured her heart out in developing this place.

"Don't ask. I don't have time to explain in detail. When you arrive in the City of Ten Thousand Swords, you can ask Uncle White and the others, and they will let you know. Right now, you need to make the arrangements right away, then immediately leave. This is a Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal; you can use it to teleport up to ten thousand kilometers away. Teleport straight to the city." Ning handed her a Dao-seal.

Autumn Leaf immediately understood how grave the situation was.

Actually, even if a Celestial Immortal of the Youngflame clan was to personally investigate, he would have to first go into the Witchriver Immortal Estate, find the 'Witchriver Palace' in which Youngflame Nong had been killed, then utilize a temporal inversion technique. Even if, through the usage of such a technique, he discovered that Ning was the killer, he would probably need a bit of time before finding out about Ning's background.

This entire process would take time, and in truth, by the time that Celestial Immortal might have made his way to Swallow Mountain, much time would have passed. And even if he came, he wouldn't recognize Autumn Leaf, nor know about the relationship between her and Ning; thus, there was absolutely no need at all for Autumn Leaf to use the Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal. Ning, however, was uneasy. In order to prevent any unknown variables from arising, he thus instructed Autumn Leaf to use the Dao-seal.

Swoosh.

After making the arrangements, Autumn Leaf, per Ning's request, was forced to use this Lesser Teleportation Dao-seal.

"Whew." Ning let out a sigh of relief. "Alright." He pushed open the door to the private room he normally stayed in, entered, then shut the door. With but a thought, he caused the illusion of a giant grizzly head to appear within the room. The grizzly head swallowed Ning within its mouth, and Ning disappeared from Serpentwing Lake, entering the underwater estate in another world.

The imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty. This was the administrative heart of this entire major world. There were many Loose Immortals and Primal Daoists here, as well as various supreme tribes, schools, and sects as well! In fact, even some of the most powerful forces from other major worlds would arrange for spies and intelligence agents to be placed here. This was truly a place where the fish swam with the dragons. Immortals were as common as the clouds, and unfathomable in their power!

The Youngflame clan's estate in this place took up a thousand kilometers. It was incomparably luxurious.

Within a quiet study inside their estate.

A golden-robed man with a crown on his head was seated before a desk, reading various intelligence reports. He was the leader of the Youngflame clan, the current Godplume Duke!

"The Kindwater clan is becoming increasingly excessive in their actions!" The golden-robed man frowned and muttered to himself.

"Clan leader, clan leader." Suddenly, a panicked voice rang out. Upon hearing this voice, the golden-robed man's face sunk. He hated it when his subordinates lost their bearings and grew panicked. However, this particular subordinate was his personal attendant, and one who should have known the rules.

The door was pushed open, and a middle-aged man dressed in blue robes charged in, then knelt down and said in sobbing voice, "Clan leader, young master Youngflame Nong, he, he…"

"Youngflame Nong? What about him?" The golden-robed man frowned.

"He died!" The blue-robed middle-aged servant spoke out in a terrified, frantic voice.

"What?!" The golden-robed man rose to his feet, revealing a look of astonishment. "How did he die? How do you know he died? You can't say such things unless you are absolutely certain."

"His life-tablet in the ancestral hall has shattered," the blue-robed servant called out.

The golden-robed man stood there in the study. After a few moments of silence, he said in a low voice, "Investigate. Send out my orders; within the time needed to boil a kettle of tea, Youngflame Nong's whereabouts needs to be discovered."

"Yes," the blue-robed servant said hurriedly.

"Youngflame Nong actually died? He should have gone to the Witchriver Immortal Estate. How could he have died? Even if he wasn't able to bind the Witchriver Immortal Estate, he had a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal on him…even within the Immortal estate, he would've been able to teleport out to the Grand Xia Dynasty's world. And he had that Fiendgod with him, Xiangliu Fang." The golden-robed man was pondering to himself.

Youngflame Nong was one of his juniors; they weren't exactly on close terms with each other, and in fact, he didn't really like Youngflame Nong. But Youngflame Nong had a Celestial Immortal supporting him!

Although on the surface, the most powerful figure in a clan was its titular clan leader, compared to the Celestial Immortals who were the Patriarchs of the clan, the clan leader was far inferior. These Celestial Immortal Patriarchs who had lived countless years were the true foundation of a clan. The birth of every Celestial Immortal would cause the entire clan to celebrate, and the fall of every Celestial Immortal would be hidden for as long as possible.

This was why no one was certain as to how many Celestial Immortals a clan had. For example, the Northmont clan of Stillwater; did it have any surviving Celestial Immortals or not? This was a mystery.

How many Celestial Immortal Patriarchs did the Youngflame clan have? This, too, was a mystery.

Even the Godplume Duke himself only knew of three Celestial Immortal Patriarchs within the clan; as for Youngflame Nong, he only knew of one! But even the Godplume Duke wasn't certain as to exactly how many Celestial Immortals his clan had.

"Clan leader." The blue-robed servant returned, saying hurriedly with respect, "Three days ago, Young master Youngflame Nong used a teleportation array to go to Stillwater Commandery, then headed towards the Witchriver Immortal Estate. I'm not capable of locating the exact location of the estate."

"Right." The golden-robed man nodded. "I need to go on a visit. For now, you are not to inform any outsiders of Youngflame Nong's death."

"Yes."

Soon, nine golden Flood Dragons, pulling an Immortal carriage behind them, soared out from within the Youngflame clan's estate. They howled through the air, departing from the imperial capital of the Grand Xia Dynasty and entering the azure void of the skies.

At the peak of a tall volcano which stretched through the clouds. The nine golden Flood Dragons, pulling the Immortal carriage, descended from the skies, then flew into the mouth of the volcano. The last time this volcano had erupted was hundreds of thousands of years ago.

They continued to fly down through the opening.

Bubbling streams of lava could be seen in the depths below. In the center of the lava flows, a towering, red-haired giant could be seen, reclining in the lava. This red-haired giant lay there as though lying within a personal bathtub. His head was supported by a 'pillow' of stone, and his feet pressed against another stone. His eyes were even larger than the Immortal carriage.

"Senior Bafire." The golden-robed man stood in front of the Immortal carriage and called out.

"Oh?" The red-haired giant opened his eyes and looked at the golden-robed man. After pondering a moment, he said slowly, "You are…Youngflame Fujun, the current clan leader and Godplume Duke?"

"I am." The golden-robed man was still quite humble.

This was because he knew who the Fiendgod in front of him was. This Fiendgod was surnamed Bafire, and was an incomparably powerful warrior who had belonged to an extremely mighty Fiendgod tribe, back in the Fiendgod Era. He was a Void-level Fiendgod! However, although he was 'only' a Void-level Fiendgod, his true combat power was absolutely on the level of Celestial Immortals. In the past, it had been one of the most brilliant, outstanding Patriarchs of the Youngflame clan who had subdued and tamed him. Unfortunately, that Patriarch had already fallen over the passage of countless years.

"What is it?" The red-haired giant asked.

"Are the three Patriarchs still within this major world?" The golden-robed man asked.

The red-haired giant said slowly, "Patriarch Infatuation left this major world more than ten thousand years ago. Where he went, and when he shall return…is unknown. Patriarch Sunfish, just a few decades, went to meet with friends in the Deva realm; generally speaking, he will spend a century in the Deva realm when meeting with friends. Only Patriarch Arcanum remains here, in secluded meditation."

"Youngflame Nong just died. This is a matter of grave import; I'd like to trouble you, senior Bafire, to make a report to Patriarch Arcanum," the golden-robed man said hurriedly.

"Youngflame Nong? The next clan leader of your clan?" The red-haired giant laughed. "Your next clan leader actually died? What a joke. I'll go help you make the report."

The red-haired giant closed his eyes. Moments later, he opened them again. "Patriarch Arcanum will arrive right away."

The location of the place where Patriarch Arcanum was secluded was a mystery; only some of Patriarch Arcanum's closest confidantes knew. Not even the Godplume Duke knew.

Whoooosh.

In the air above the lava, spots of stellar light suddenly appeared. The brilliant spots of stellar light began to link together, seemingly forming a mysterious, arcane formation. Suddenly, a tall, skinny, narrow-eyed elder stepped out from within that swirl of countless stars. In this moment, it seemed as though the entire world was bowing towards him, as though he and he alone was the only master of the world.

"Patriarch Arcanum." The golden-robed man hurriedly bowed with respect.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 1 – The Culprit is Ji Ning

The old man looked at the golden-robed man. His voice was rather shrill, and his gaze was filled with grief. "My child Nong died?"

"Patriarch, Youngflame Nong's spirit-tablet has shattered," the golden-robed man said respectfully, not daring to show the slightest bit of discourtesy.

"Lishui, your master has failed you." Patriarch Arcanum shut his eyes, tears appearing at the corner. Immortal Lishui was the female disciple who he had loved the dearest; the two had identical dispositions, and Patriarch Arcanum had all but viewed her as he would his own daughter. Unfortunately, Immortal Lishui had been too arrogant when facing her Celestial Tribulation, and in the end, her spirit had been destroyed!

The Celestial Tribulation was the greatest tribulation in any individual's life. Overcoming it meant becoming a carefree Celestial Immortal; failing it, for the lucky, meant becoming a Loose Immortal, while the unlucky would have their souls destroyed.

Immortal Lishui had simply been too arrogant. At the last stage, she refused to give up, and had chosen to continue to fight head on! And so…she died!

Patriarch Arcanum had been griefstricken by this for an extremely long period of time. Fortunately, Immortal Lishui had a son named Youngflame Nong. Patriarch Arcanum had supported him from an early age, wanting to make up for his failure with Immortal Lishui by taking care of Youngflame Nong. He had given Youngflame Nong his full support this entire time, and had insisted on pushing Youngflame Nong onto the position of Godplume Duke.

Unfortunately…Youngflame Nong had died! Died at the Wanxiang level!

"I arranged a Fiendgod to protect him. That Fiendgod should've been able to withstand even a supreme Loose Immortal. How could he have died? How? Who killed him?" Patriarch Arcanum revealed a look of explosive, incomparably terrifying savagery in his eyes. "He was also carrying the Greater Teleportation Dao-seal I gave him; even in a completely different world, he would've been able to teleport straight back."

The golden-robed man said hurriedly, "Patriarch, Youngflame Nong should have died within the Witchriver Immortal Estate."

"Witchriver Immortal Estate?" Patriarch Arcanum was instantly enraged. "Tests, tests, always the stupid tests. What's the big deal about becoming Godplume Duke?!"

Although he was angry, Patriarch Arcanum knew that this was in accordance with the rules of the clan; they couldn't be easily discarded.

"Where is the Witchriver Immortal Estate?" Patriarch Arcanum asked.

"Within Stillwater Commandery. I'll lead the way for you, Patriarch," the golden-robed man said respectfully.

"Fine. Let's go." Patriarch Arcanum gave the order.

Soon, the nine Flood Dragons flew out, with that Immortal carriage behind them. Patriarch Arcanum remained seated within, while the golden-robed man sat in the front, in the position normally reserved for servants, carriage drivers, and bodyguards.

Swoosh!

The Immortal carriage soared into the skies, flying out off the volcano.

The Immortal estate had been hidden in a separate world which was only connected to the Grand Xia Dynasty's world by a single corridor. If one did not know where the connection point was, there would be no way to find the exact location of the corridor, even if one was a Celestial Immortal. Thus, one would naturally be unable to enter that world.

Since the Youngflame clan had arranged for Youngflame Nong to take his trials there, they naturally had, early on, sent clan elders bearing the key to the Immortal estate into the estate. They had done a quick surveillance, assuring themselves that the 'Witchriver Immortal Estate' was a place which would pose something of a challenge to Youngflame Nong, but which absolutely couldn't put him in mortal danger. Only then did they bestow the key onto Youngflame Nong and have him come.

This was why the Youngflame clan had the precise location of the Witchriver Immortal Estate.

Whoosh.

In the air above the Skyrove Mountains, there appeared an Immortal carriage that was pulled by nine Flood Dragons.

The golden-robed man at the front of the carriage pulled out and unfurled a scroll while saying, "This scroll is of the Skyrove Mountains, and it also marks the location where the Skyrove Mountains connects to the Witchriver Immortal Estate. It's right in front of us."

They gave it a careful glance and did a quick comparison. Soon, the Immortal carriage arrived within the gorge. "Right there, on the walls of the gorge," the golden-robed man said.

Patriarch Arcanum, seated within the carriage, had a very sinister look on his face. He barked, "This cliff wall is enormous. Where, exactly, is the connection point? The Witchriver Immortal Estate is in a separate dimension; unless you can find the exact point, there's no way to enter it."

"Patriarch, please wait a moment." The golden-robed man immediately executed a secret art, causing a golden, glowing rune to appear in his palm.

Rumble…

A golden rune began to glow somewhere on the cliff wall as well.

"Right there. That's the place where the Witchriver Immortal Estate connects to our world," the golden-robed man said, pointing forward. "The clan elders set a secret mark there long ago. That's the mark."

"Open up." Patriarch Arcanum's gaze turned incredibly sharp as he released his full power. To forcibly break through the defenses of an Immortal estate was no easy task. Spots of starlight began to appear in the surrounding area. The countless specks of starlight seemed dreamlike and illusory. At the same time, two giant hands of starlight began to coalesce, then tore towards the front.

Riiiiiip. Space itself tore apart, a corridor appearing. One could vaguely see through the corridor that there was an Immortal estate world on the other side.

If one had not known the exact connection location, however, the only result of this rip would have been the void.

"The Witchriver Immortal Estate? So it truly is here." Patriarch Arcanum said coldly, "Wait here then."

"Alright." The golden-robed man responded with respect.

Swish. Patriarch Arcanum rose to his feet, then took a single step which carried him straight through the torn-open corridor and into the Immortal estate world.

The Immortal estate world was completely empty. With but a thought, Patriarch Arcanum spread his sense out to cover the entire world, capable of discovering everything within it.

"There isn't a single living thing here?" Patriarch Arcanum was startled. But of course, how could he know that when Ning fled, he had told the monstrous races that there was a high chance a Celestial Immortal would come. The monsters had been so terrified that the monstrous Dao-soldiers had seized all of their kinsmen and pulled them onto warships in quite a brutal and ruthless fashion, using all sorts of cultivation techniques to quickly drag and send away one batch after another. In but the time needed to boil a cup of tea, the entire population of monsters had completely fled.

"But those items in those monstrous mountain lairs…those lake lairs…those estates…there's fruit and wine placed out in the open. Clearly, they just left a short time ago." Patriarch Arcanum turned his gaze towards a nearby Skypillar of golden light. "The five palaces of Immortal Witchriver. After my child Nong came, he definitely would've entered one of these five palaces. Most likely, he died within one of them!"

With a single step, Patriarch Arcanum appeared before the Dao Repository Palace. He then stretched out his finger and pointed towards the distance. "Temporal Inversion!"

The 'Temporal Inversion' technique was an incomparably powerful technique. Generally speaking, only Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals who had incredibly profound insights into the Dao of Time were capable of using it. If their insights were insufficient, then they would have to wait until they surpassed the restrictions of the Three Realms and became Celestial Immortals before they would be able to use this art.

Whooosh….

The scenery in the area began to change as time began to rapidly flow backwards. It flowed all the way back to the point where Youngflame Nong used the Wildcore and the 'Lock' scroll before just barely bypassing the monstrous Dao-soldiers and entering the Dao Repository Palace. And then, time began to progress forward at a normal pace. Soon, Youngflame Nong led Ning and the others out of the Dao Repository Palace.

"My boy Nong entered this palace, then left this palace; he didn't die here." Patriarch Arcanum followed Youngflame Nong's warship as it flew forward. As he did so, the scene in the second location began to replay once more.

Youngflame Nong, Xue Hongyi, Ji Ning, and the others rode the warship all the way to the fifth palace, the Witchriver Palace, where the monsters had set up a tight guard. Patriarch Arcanum just flew behind them.

Youngflame Nong used the black and white disc, then immediately entered the fifth palace.

"All of the monsters were gathered here, rather than being dispersed in the other palaces. My boy Nong, in turn, was willing to pay any price to enter this palace. This should have been the final palace he entered." Patriarch Arcanum's figure turned blurry for a moment, and then he reappeared within the fifth palace, the Witchriver Palace.

Within the Witchriver Palace.

Patriarch Arcanum once more used the Temporal Inversion technique, replaying the scene in front of him, starting from when Youngflame Nong and the others entered the palace.

The breaking of the illusory formation…the entering of the main hall…the celebratory banquet…Ninelotus' dance…Ji Ning's anger…the attack of many golems…Ji Ning using the Windwing Evasion…one scene after another appeared. Even the dialogue was repeated.

"Eh?" Patriarch Arcanum suddenly frowned. "That's the Windwing Evasion!"

In the past, for the sake of completing and perfecting their copy of this divine ability, Patriarch Arcanum had personally soul-scoured some members of the Yuchi clan; he naturally was quite familiar with the Windwing Evasion. He immediately recognized that Ji Ning used the Windwing Evasion.

The scenes continued to change at high speed. Youngflame Nong tried to force Ji Ning to cuff himself with the godlock chains; Xue Hongyi then suddenly called out that Ji Ning's mother was named Yuchi Snow. Instantly, a major battle began!

Xiangliu Fang, by himself, was able to block Mu Northson, Ninelotus, Yu Wei, and Adept Vastriver.

Xue Hongyi went to fight Ji Ning. However…Ji Ning's power suddenly increased explosively, causing the entire hall to be filled with countless swords. A single, dazzling sword-light executed Xue Hongyi.

"Grand Dao Domain?" Patriarch Arcanum continued to watch, and as he did, his magical power continued to rapidly deplete; Temporal Inversion, after all, was no ordinary technique. "This kid named Ji Ning who knows the Windwing Evasion, he's only at the Wanxiang level. Even if he comprehended a Grand Dao Domain, he should've been far from being a match for the Fiendgod bodyguard my boy Nong had."

Indeed, Ning was defeated by a single palm blow from Xiangliu Fang. But right at that moment…that black loop had flown out.

The souls of Youngflame Nong, Xiangliu Fang, and the Redscale Salamander were all devoured and extinguished.

"This, this, this is…" Patriarch Arcanum's eyes were filled with shock and rage. "A Soulslayer Loop? How could this kid have possibly procured such a treasure? Can it be that a major power died during one of the huge, chaotic battles of the Fiendgod Era, and the Soulslayer Sphere ended up as a relic somewhere, where the kid found it?"

Luck. It was hard to say what luck might bring.

A backwater bumpkin might be lucky enough to acquire a heaven-defying treasure! In fact, a lucky kid who offered an old man a bowl of water might end up finding that the old man was one of the major powers of the Three Realms.

"My child Nong didn't have bad luck, but he actually ended up dying to this Ji Ning of the Black-White College. For this Ji Ning to have procured such a treasure…it seems he must have been blessed with tremendous luck. However, no matter how lucky he might be, he won't be able to overcome my divine abilities." Patriarch Arcanum's eyes became filled with a cold light. "Those survivors were Yu Wei, Mu Northson, Vastriver, and Ninelotus; all of them are disciples of the Black-White College."

"Black-White College."

Patriarch Arcanum turned, once more ripping a corridor through space, at the point where the estate was linked with the outside world of the Grand Xia Empire.

Swoosh!

Within the Skyrove Mountains. The golden-robed man had been waiting here the entire time, only to see Patriarch Arcanum tear a corridor through space and emerge through it.

"Patriarch," the golden-robed man said.

"The culprit was Ji Ning of the Black-White College." Patriarch Arcanum looked at him. "Do you know him?"

The golden-robed man was the Godplume Duke; how could he possibly know about one particular genius within Stillwater Commandery? He immediately shook his head. "I do not."

"Then let's go straight to Stillwater City. First, we'll do a thorough investigation regarding Ji Ning at the Heavenly Treasures Mountain; then, we shall go to the Black-White College! Those other disciples are most likely still within the Black-White College," Patriarch Arcanum instructed coldly.

"Yes." The golden-robed man immediately commanded the Immortal carriage to leave.

The nine Flood Dragons pulled the Immortal carriage, quickly departing from the Skyrove Mountains. They flew through the skies, heading towards Stillwater City.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 2 – The Eight Loose Immortals of the Black-White College

In the skies above Stillwater City. There were nine Flood Dragons, pulling an Immortal carriage behind them, which had come to a halt above the Heavenly Treasures Mountain.

"Patriarch, wait here. I will go investigate Ji Ning in detail," the Godplume Duke said respectfully.

"Also, Ji Ning's mother is named Yuchi Snow; purchase an intelligence report on her as well." Patriarch Arcanum remained seated aboard the Immortal carriage as he calmly gave the orders.

"Yes."

The Godplume Duke immediately flew down into the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. Just a short while later, the Godplume Duke walked out from within it. With a blurring movement, he flew back into the sky, next to Patriarch Arcanum, respectfully handing him a book with two characters on it – JI NING.

"Just Ji Ning's?" Patriarch Arcanum frowned.

"Ji Ning's mother, Yuchi Snow, was a minor Xiantian lifeform who hadn't accomplished any major deeds; the only record of her is that she had a son named Ji Ning. The Heavenly Treasures Mountain informed me that there is virtually no intelligence regarding Yuchi Snow, and all of what they have is in this tome," the Godplume Duke explained.

Patriarch Arcanum nodded softly.

Although the Heavenly Treasures Mountain's intelligence unit was spread throughout the world, they weren't as all-knowing as the heavens themselves. They, too, needed to engage in deep, careful investigations in order to find things out. Yuchi Snow and her family's flight was a very secretive thing to begin with; even the Youngflame clan hadn't been able to catch these final few fish who had fled their net. It wasn't strange for the Heavenly Treasures Mountain to be unaware of it as well.

"Ji Ning? He's actually this young?" Patriarch Arcanum, upon seeing the report, was shocked.

His beloved Youngflame Nong had trained for more than a century. Amongst Wanxiang Adepts, that was actually quite young, because Wanxiang Adepts could live for up to eight hundred years. Unexpectedly, this kid who had killed the Fiendgod Xiangliu Fang as well as Youngflame Nong, this kid who had already reached the Grand Dao Domain level in the Dao of the Sword, was actually this young!

"The more impressive his potential, the more he needs to die!" A cold light flashed through Patriarch Arcanum's eyes. He quickly flipped through the report, finishing it.

"Swallow Mountain? Serpentwing Lake?" Patriarch Arcanum hummed to himself, then instructed, "Come, let's go to the Black-White College."

The Black-White College had made thorough preparations long ago. Mu Northson, Yu Wei, and Adept Vastriver had used the closest teleportation array to first go straight to the Crimson Dragon Mountains, and then from those mountains to Stillwater City; they had moved fairly quickly, and as soon as they had returned to the Black-White College, they had immediately reported this event to the higher-ups.

The Headmaster's Palace of the Black-White College. This was also the place where they welcomed important guests.

Within the palace were multiple seated figures. On one side of the palace sat the black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai, along with Immortal Fivecraze and the rest of the Immortals. There were a total of eight of them. Behind them stood Headmaster Jadesea and three of the third-generation disciples; Rainbowflame Fairy Yu Wei, Adept Vastriver, and Mu Northson.

In front of them sat Patriarch Arcanum and the Godplume Duke.

"I imagine you all know why I have come here today." Patriarch Arcanum sat there and spoke calmly as he swept his gaze across the group of Immortals before him.

Eight Loose Immortals and Earth Immortals.

Virtually all of the Loose Immortals of the Black-White College who were normally in closed-door meditation, in seclusion, or adventuring had returned. Aside from a single Loose Immortal who had already left this major world and wouldn't be able to make it back in time, the other eight had all returned. The Immortal cultivators of the Black-White College were all absolute elites; they all had mastered a complete Dao-Path, which was a prerequisite for them even reaching the Primal Daoist level. Only after mastering two Dao-Paths, however, were they permitted to break through to the Earth Immortal level!

This is why the Primal Daoists of the Black-White College were comparable to Loose Immortals in combat power. As for the Loose Immortals of the Black-White College…each of them were capable of fending off ten 'normal' Loose Immortals. Each of them had the combat power of a supreme Loose Immortal.

"Of course we know." The short old man, Immortal Fivecraze, chuckled as he spoke. "Youngflame Nong of your Youngflame clan was killed by our disciple, Ji Ning, correct?"

"Correct." Patriarch Arcanum replied calmly.

"If he died, he died. When young people are out adventuring, it's normal for them fight and kill each other. If you are weaker than someone else, you die. That's normal," the short elder said. "If you have to blame someone, you can only blame yourself for being too weak. Generally speaking, the clans and sects won't intervene."

For example, the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains; Ning's group had often fought internally and quite a few had died, but no sect had ever come for reprisal against another.

Patriarch Arcanum's gaze instantly changed. It became sharp.

"However, if you, senior Arcanum, doted on this Youngflame Nong to the point where you would lower yourself to personally attack Ji Ning, there's nothing our Black-White College can do about it." The short elder sighed, "So…I really don't understand why, senior Arcanum, you have come to our Black-White College?"

"Hand over Ji Ning," Patriarch Arcanum said coldly, "And this matter will have nothing to do with your Black-White College. Otherwise…hmph!"

Instantly, the faces of the Immortals of the Black-White College changed.

Hand over Ji Ning?

"Forget it!" The black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai snapped coldly, "Ji Ning is a disciple of our Black-White College. If he were to die while adventuring in the outside world, we wouldn't blame others…but you want us to hand him over? Are you dreaming? And, let me tell you something – so long as Ji Ning returns to the Black-White College, your Youngflame clan can forget about harming a single hair on his head."

"Senior Arcanum, we respect you as a Celestial Immortal, but our Black-White College, which has existed for so many generations, isn't so easily abused either," the short, elderly Immortal Fivecraze warned coldly as well.

"Our Black-White College has our own rules; if our disciples die while adventuring, we won't blame others, but once they return, then they will absolutely be protected by us." The tall, muscular man wrapped up in chain links spoke out in a loud, rumbling voice, his eyes seemed to be filled with thunder.

Patriarch Arcanum's face sank. "Oh, so your Black-White College wishes to become enemies with my Youngflame clan." Patriarch Arcanum swept these Immortals with his gaze.

The Youngflame clan was, indeed, powerful. It was much more powerful than even the Northmont clan of Stillwater. It had more than a thousand Loose Immortals and Earth Immortals; from this, one could imagine how mighty they were! However, just because they were powerful didn't mean they could freely abuse other powers; for example, the Black-White College was located within Stillwater City. Who would dare launch a massive attack within Stillwater City? There would only be one result – becoming wanted criminals of the Grand Xia Dynasty!

As for fighting in the outside world?

Every single Loose Immortal of the Black-White College was top-tier; each of them were capable of fighting against ten Loose Immortals! If they completely focused on fleeing, it would be very hard to deal with them.

"It isn't that we wish to become enemies with you; rather, your Youngflame clan is forcing us to become enemies. If our Black-White College can't even protect our own disciples, what the hell type of College would we be?" Immortal Diancai replied coldly.

"If that's the case!" Patriarch Arcanum coldly rose to his feet. "Then don't blame the Youngflame clan for our future actions. Let's go!"

"Yes, Patriarch." The Godplume Duke followed by his side.

But just as Patriarch Arcanum was about to lead the Godplume Duke to leave, a voice suddenly rang out. "Brother Arcanum."

A hunchbacked old man suddenly walked in. His hair was completely white, and his eyebrows drooped downwards. He was leaning against a wooden cane as he walked in.

Patriarch Arcanum was momentarily startled. Then, he let out a cold laugh. "Hunchmont? You are still alive?"

"You haven't died yet; how could I?" The hunchbacked old man laughed.

"Senior Hunchmont."

The eight Loose Immortals of the Black-White College all rose to their feet and saluted respectfully. Celestial Immortal Hunchmont…he was one of the most famous Celestial Immortal Patriarchs in the history of the Northmont clan. However, because he had lived for so very long, many outside schools and sects thought him to be dead; after all, Celestial Immortals would occasionally engage in battles against each other for the sake of their tribe or for certain treasures. After many battles, some would eventually fall.

"The Black-White College belongs to our Stillwater Commandery." The hunchbacked elder leaned against his cane. "Arcanum, if you want to deal with their disciples, there is nothing they can do to stop you; why must you force the Black-White College to hand Ji Ning over? If you have the ability to do so, go ahead and deal with him yourself; our Northmont clan absolutely won't interfere. But if you were to deal against the Black-White College, you would be stepping beyond your bounds! Stillwater Commandery belongs to the Northmont clan!"

Patriarch Arcanum's face sank. Although the Youngflame clan was even more powerful than the Northmont clan, there was a limit to their strength; the Northmont clan held a marquisdom, and it had existed since the Fiendgod Era as well. After the passage of so many years…who knew how many trump cards the Northmont clan of Stillwater might be holding in secret?

"Fine. Since you, Hunchmont, have spoken out…" Patriarch Arcanum nodded. "Then I won't quibble with the Black-White College. However, this Ji Ning…he absolutely must die! If anyone tries to stop me, I'll kill them as well! Fujun, let's go."

Patriarch Arcanum led the Godplume Duke out of the Headmaster's Palace. They boarded the Immortal carriage, then quickly flew into the skies and disappeared.

"Senior Huchmont." Immortal Fivecraze walked over, watching as Patriarch Arcanum flew away aboard the Immortal carriage. "This Patriarch Arcanum seems to be a bit too arrogant."

"That's just the way he is. He's like a madman." The hunchbacked elder laughed. "Don't worry about him. But that Ji Ning of yours…you had best not interfere. Given how murderous Patriarch Arcanum seems to be feeling right now, you won't be able to stop him. Alright, it is time for me to go. Such a pity. Ji Ning was a fine young sapling. What a pity."

And then, the hunchbacked elder left.

Within another world. The underwater estate.

Ning had just appeared within the main hall. He immediately saw the giant yellow bear and the old black bull.

"Seniors," Ning was about to speak out.

"You caused a huge mess in the outside world, eh?" The giant yellow bear said, "You were in such a frantic hurry to order all of the people off of Brightheart Island."

"I did cause a huge mess, yes," Ning said hurriedly. "I have…"

The giant yellow bear interrupted Ning. "Let me ask you this; have you completed your arrangements in the outside world?"

"I have." Ning nodded.

"Mm." The giant yellow bear nodded. "I can sense the turbulence in your heart. Your mind is currently in a state of chaos. First, go to the Stellar Hall and read some of the star maps within it. After reading a few books and calming yourself down, come and speak to me regarding your matters."

Ning was startled. "Read in the Stellar Hall?"

"Go," the giant yellow bear instructed.

"Yes, senior." Ning didn't disobey. He went straight to the Stellar Hall.

Within the Stellar Hall. Outside the thatched cottage.

Ning carried a book to the stone desk, then sat down, opened it up, and began to force himself to calm down and read. He had first killed Youngflame Nong, then separated with Ninelotus, and then arrange for the monsters of the Immortal estate to protect his clan. Whenever Ning thought about the impending arrival of the Youngflame clan, Ning's mind would become filled with a myriad of random thoughts, causing him to feel extremely restless.

"Today, Chang came to pay his respects to me…" Ning's voice reverberated within this small pocket world. Every single word was extremely simple, but when joined together, they became filled with boundless magical power. In a very natural way, Ning began to calm down; in fact, he even began to slowly enter a state of attunement and meditation on the Dao.

Calm.

Relaxation.

The restlessness in Ning's heart faded away, and Ning raised his head to stare at the stars in the sky.

Suddenly…rain began to fall down from the skies, as fine as silk, sprinkling everywhere, including upon Ning himself.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 3 – Mastering the First Dao-Path

The downpour steadily grew, and it poured down into this world. Ji Ning didn't move to avoid it, nor did he use his elemental ki to block it; he allowed the rain to cascade onto his body. He felt closer to the raindrops than he ever had before, so close that he felt intoxicated by them.

Suddenly…

A nameless aura began to envelope Ning. This was the aura of the Dao! Ning's entire body seemed to have become the Dao itself.

"The Dao of Rainwater?" The giant yellow bear and the old black bull were both completely stunned.

"He's actually mastered it. Although Ning has made major improvements in the ten years he spent at Serpentwing Lake, and had an extremely deep grasp regarding the Dao of Rainwater, he was still some distance away from mastering it. Generally speaking, when comprehending the Dao, the farther along the path you go, the more difficult it will become. What in the world has Ji Ning experienced? Whatever it was, it seems to have baptized him, allowing him to break through and completely understand the Dao of Rainwater at one go." The giant yellow bear sighed in amazement.

The old black bull nodded as well. . "Whatever it was he experienced, it had a tremendous impact on him."

The rainwater vanished. Ning stared at the stars in the sky. He had advanced in the Dao of the Inferno, the Dao of the Gale, and the Dao of the Sword as well. His understanding of the Dao of the Sword in particular, which had reached the Grand Dao Domain, had further stabilized after this period of time of time in the Stellar Hall.

Finally, he came to a halt and rested.

"How much time did I spend in meditation?" Ning spoke out.

"Not too long, just an hour." The giant yellow bear laughed, "But in this hour, you improved quite a bit; you surged forward tremendously in one breath."

Ning felt more peaceful than he ever had before. He revealed a hint of a smile. "I can sense my improvement as well. I have thoroughly comprehended the Dao of Rainwater, and in fact, I have gained a certain degree of insight into all 'water'-type Daos."

"This is called resonance," the giant yellow bear said. "You have now mastered the Dao-Path of Rainwater; naturally, you will continue to advance in the element of water. For the other, similar Daos to resonate is quite normal. Unfortunately, although you advanced a bit in the Dao of the Inferno and the Dao of the Gale, you are still a little ways off from completely mastering these Dao-Paths."

Ning nodded.

Of his three Daos, he had gained insights into the Dao of Rainwater the earliest, and his level of comprehension with regards to this Dao was the highest. His insights into the Dao of the Inferno was secondary only to the Dao of Rainwater, and was actually quite close; however, he still had yet to completely master it. As for the Dao of the Gale, it was weaker than both the other two.

"I didn't expect that you'd actually be able to master a Grand Dao Domain." The giant yellow bear looked at Ning. "Sword Immortals are all skilled at offense; it's clear that your strength has risen significantly after you reached the Grand Dao Domain. Now that you've also mastered the Dao-Path of Rainwater, you will be absolutely capable of fusing your Dao of Rainwater into your Dao of the Sword."

The Dao of the Sword was a mechanistic Dao. One could infuse one's insights in other areas into the Dao of the Sword and display it through the sword!

"Let me try." Ning laughed, then struck out with a finger into a sword-stance.

Suddenly, rainwater appeared in the surrounding area. The rainwater sprinkled everywhere, but each drop of water carried an incomparably amazing amount of power. The entire world seemed to have been frozen into place. An ordinary Wanxiang Adept probably wouldn't even be able to move right now. After completely mastering a Dao-Path, one would be able to summon the awesome presence of the Dao itself, causing the entire surrounding area to be under one's own control.

"This technique is called 'My Own World'. Activate." Ning suddenly flicked his finger. Swish! A streak of watery sword-light sliced through the skies, leaving behind a scar in the air that lingered for quite some time without vanishing.

"A good technique; truly, a good sword technique," the giant yellow bear praised.

"It's not just good; even Loose Immortals are generally only at this level, and many aren't as good as you, Ji Ning," the old black bull called out in surprise.

Ning laughed. Generally speaking, Primal Daoists were at the Dao Domain level, while Loose Immortals were generally capable of mastering a complete Dao-Path.

Ning had not only mastered a completely Dao-Path, he had also reached the Grand Dao Domain level in the Dao of the Sword. It was even harder to reach the Grand Dao Domain level than mastering a complete Dao-Path. With the two amplifying each other…indeed, many Loose Immortals were inferior to Ning. However, that only referred to 'ordinary' Loose Immortals, not ones like the Loose Immortals of the Black-White College.

"I am now in control of a complete Dao-Path. According to the rules of the College, I can make my breakthrough to the Primal Daoist level," Ning said. "In addition, after having killed a young master of a major tribe, I've reaped quite a few rewards; I imagine I should now have enough liquefied elemental essence to make that breakthrough. Only, I'm still hesitating; should I make that breakthrough or not? I'd like to ask you two seniors to please advise me on what I should do next."

The old black bull had accompanied Immortal Juhua for a million years, and had a great deal of experience. Naturally, his vision would be very broad as well.

As for the giant yellow bear, he had followed Daoist Threelives and had unfathomable experiences.

Ning felt that he truly should ask the advice of these two.

"Speak," The giant yellow bear said.

"What's this? You killed a young master of a major clan? Tell, tell," the old black bull said with great eagerness.

Ning nodded. "I was originally training in Brightheart Island on Serpentwing Lake, but a few days ago, a large warship suddenly appeared in the skies above it…" Ning began to describe his experience in detail, from start to finish. He even explained the backgrounds of Youngflame Nong and Ninelotus, so as to give these two old figures sufficient background information for pondering.

He even told them about Yu Wei's advice and the upcoming Conclave of Immortal Destiny.

"The Youngflame clan is going to pursue me. What should I do?" Ning looked at the old black bull and the giant yellow bear.

"A major tribe that can rank amongst the top ten clans of one of the three thousand major worlds…this sort of tribe definitely has Celestial Immortals," the giant yellow bear said. "In addition, they should have more than just one. A force like this…for the current you, they are indeed far too powerful. Fortunately, in the Grand Xia Dynasty, there are strict laws, which is why you still have a chance to resist them."

"The Youngflame clan? I know this clan," the old black bull said hurriedly. "In the past, Immortal Juhua had a bit of a relationship with the clan. The Youngflame clan does indeed rank towards the front amongst the clans of the Grand Xia Dynasty. However, although the imperial clan of the Grand Xia did indeed need these clans when it was unifying the world, after doing so, these clans became a threat to them."

Ning was startled.

"In truth, the imperial clan of the Grand Xia has been working all this time to try and weaken the power of the clans," the old black bull said quickly. "They first built the commandery cities, spreading them throughout the world so as to increase their sphere of control, and then formed the Raindragon Guard and spread them throughout the world as well! In addition, they secretly forment internal struggles between these clans, tribes, and sects."

"Can it be that the other tribes are idiots? They'll just stupidly fight amongst each other like that?" Ning was curious.

"This is what you don't understand. This isn't a hidden scheme; it's an open scheme. There is only so much land in this major world, and only so many treasures. And yet, there are so many tribes. What to do about it? The imperial clan of the Grand Xia will take their share, then leave the other major powers to fight over what's left. If you aren't willing to fight for your share, then your clan will end up with no treasures. Thus, they are forced to struggle against each other, and as they do, they naturally end up forming grudges."

Ning nodded.

"However, the imperial clan of the Grand Xia wouldn't dare to act directly against its marquises. That's because if they were to act against one marquis, all of the other marquises would feel threatened; in fact, some actually might join forces to revolt!" The old black bull continued, "This is why the imperial clan of the Grand Xia has set down some laws, some public laws."

"So long as you do not disobey the laws, the imperial clan absolutely won't touch you."

"But if you were to violate those laws? The imperial clan of the Grand Xia would be like sharks that smelled the scent of blood; they will eat you alive," the old black bull laughed. "So long as you hide within a commandery city, the Celestial Immortals of the Youngflame clan definitely won't dare to act against you, because once they do, then the imperial clan of the Grand Xia, which has always wanted to whittle away at the power of the marquises, will have an ironclad reason to act against them. They would quickly send out a squad to annihilate that Celestial Immortal!"

"Now, do you understand some of the hidden undercurrents of this world of the Grand Xia Dynasty's?" The old black bull looked at Ning.

Ning nodded.

The imperial clan of the Grand Xia, and the many marquises.

Many of the marquises held grudges against each other; no wonder Yu Wei had advised him to join a different marquisdom.

"That senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei of yours told you to go participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Her words are quite correct," the giant yellow bear said. "You are going to become a Celestial Immortal, and in fact, an Empyrean God…"

"Senior, what is an 'Empyrean God'?" Ning immediately asked. Ning had never quite understood what Empyrean Gods were.

"When Earth Immortals, who are at the 'Void' level, overcome the Celestial Tribulation, they will naturally become carefree Celstial Immortals."

"Void-level Fiendgods, however, when overcoming the Celestial Tribulation will become Empyrean Gods!" The giant yellow bear said, "To become an Empyrean God is tens of times, perhaps a hundred times, as difficult as becoming a Celestial Immortal."

Ning was speechless. "A hundred times harder?"

It was rare for there to be even a single Celestial Immortal for every ten thousand Earth Immortals; to become an Empyrean God was even harder?!

"That's because they have completely different levels of power," the giant yellow bear explained. "Earlier, you said you encountered a Fiendgod, a Hydraga. He was only at the Primal level, but already comparable to a peak Loose Immortal."

"Right.' Ning nodded.

"A Void-level Fiendgod is already comparable to a Celestial Immortal. And an Empyrean God…they are absolutely comparable to True Immortals!" The giant yellow bear looked at Ning. "Now do you understand? Once you become an Empyrean God…you would become a true major power of the Three Realms. In fact, even if you were to go to the Deva realm and express a desire to join the Celestial Court, the Celestial Emperor would warmly welcome you and even let you command hundreds of thousands of celestial soldiers or generals."

Ning blinked. The Celestial Emperor of the Celestial Court would personally welcome him? Let him command hundreds of thousands of celestial soldiers?

"Master said that only after I become an Empyrean God would I truly be considered his apprentice." Ning couldn't help but say, "This requirement is a bit high for me."

"Think about what Master's status was. He emerged from the world alongside Pangu and Nuwa…he was one of the most supreme powers of the entire Three Realms. Only after reaching the Empyrean God level could it be said that you are not an embarrassment to him," the giant yellow bear said. "But don't change the subject. As I was saying earlier, the advice from your senior apprentice-sister, Yu Wei, to go to the Conclave of Immortal Destiny was very good advice. This is because, as the saying goes, it is better to travel ten thousand kilometers than to read ten thousand books…and it is better to make a single journey on the border between life and death than to travel ten thousand kilometers."

"The Conclave of Immortal Destiny will have all the geniuses of this entire major world present; in fact, some of the geniuses of other major worlds might come in secret as well, so as to take part."

"This is just like the cultivation of Gu-bugs. Put ten thousand venomous bugs in one place and have them fight against each other and devour each other. In the end, the venomous bugs that you have left will be incomparably powerful. The principle is the same; the ones to survive the Conclave of Immortal Destiny shall be truly extraordinary. This is an excellent chance for you to temper yourself, a chance which is quite rare and hard to find."

The giant yellow bear continued, "Right, you said you killed Youngflame Nong; didn't you acquire a great deal of treasure from him? Take it out, take it all out and let me take a look and see which would be of use to you."

Ning waved his hand. "He had many treasures. I just bound the storage-type magic treasure not long ago." He had been hiding some of the treasures within his Zifu, while he had stored the others in his own storage-type magic treasure.

Whoosh.

Instantly, a small hill appeared on the ground, completely formed from precious items and magic treasures.

"These are the treasures and precious items of Youngflame Nong." Ning pointed at them.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 4 – Primaltwin

Ning waved his hand again, and another hill of items appeared as well, as well as some sacks. "These were left behind by that dead Fiendgod." The Hydraga had once forced himself to train as a Ki Refiner as well. Unfortunately, natural Fiendgods were innately very weak as Ki Refiners. Only after many years of painstaking training had he reached the Zifu level; afterwards, Xiangliu Fang could no longer be bothered to train in this regard.

After reaching the Zifu level, he was able to use storage-type magic treasures, at least. This was enough to make Xiangliu Fang quite happy! In the Fiendgod Era, before he had trained as a Ki Refiner, he always had to carry around his treasures with him.

"There's quite a bit." The old black bull sighed in amazement.

"Let me take a look." The giant yellow bear swept his gaze across the magic treasures. Suddenly, the two treasure-hills all flew into the air, then stayed there.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

These treasures quickly began to sort themselves out by type. Bottles and jars moved to one side, while Dao-seals and jade discs, as well as some other unique items were pulled to another. The many magic treasures were also placed on another side…

Ning simply watched as the levitating treasures sorted themselves out by type. "I didn't sense any ripples of power, but these treasures all levitated into the air; the powers of this spirit of the underwater estate truly are unfathomable."

"This is a spirit-pill; if you lose an arm or a leg, eat the pill, and it'll be healed. You are a Fiendgod Refiner; this is useless to you. Go back and sell it off or give it to a friend."

"This is a poison powder…it's hard to ascertain how powerful the poison is, but it should be decent."

"This bottle is marked with the words, 'Drunken Immortal's Pill'? Eh? Its intoxicating properties are quite strong; I imagine that even if Loose Immortals ate it, they would be intoxicated. Three pills in total."

The giant yellow bear quickly went through the various jars and bottles. Soon, he pulled out two of the jade bottles from the masses. "These two bottles both contain liquefied elemental essence, roughly twenty five thousand kilograms each, for a total of fifty thousand kilograms. Youngflame Nong actually carried fifty thousand kilograms on him…that's quite a bit." Unless they were in desperate need, most Immortal cultivators wouldn't carry that much with them. They would use them to buy magic treasures or just use them up. However, to Youngflame Nong, fifty thousand kilograms wasn't that much.

"He must've been worried that he might gain a sudden insight while wandering the world, and so prepared them for a possible breakthrough to the Primal Daoist level," Ning laughed. Fifty thousand kilograms; this was absolutely enough to break through to the Primal Daoist level.

"You cannot use it." The giant yellow bear shook his head. "You are going to the Conclave of Immortal Destiny; you cannot breakthrough to become a Primal Daoist."

Ning nodded. He understood this principle. This Conclave came only once every three centuries; there was no way he could wait another three hundred years. Thus, this was the only chance he would have to attend the Conclave. Sparring against so many other geniuses on the same level was an opportunity that would have long, far-ranging impacts on him. If one didn't have a long-term plan and only focused on short-term gains, in the end, one would suffer for it.

"These curios aren't bad either."

"Oh? A Greater Teleportation Dao-seal? Youngflame Nong had a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal?" The giant yellow bear called out in surprise as he pointed with a finger. Instantly, a rune-covered leaf flew over.

Ning's eyes lit up. "Greater Teleportation Dao-seal?"

He had previously acquired two protective items from the underwater estate; one was that black loop, while the other was, in fact, a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal.

One was meant for attack; the other was meant for defense and escaping.

Upon using a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal, the might within it would instantly activate and surround him in a barrier which even Loose Immortals wouldn't be able to break. And then, he would vanish and disappear. Even if the region was spacelocked, even if he was trapped in a place of no escape, he could still use a Greater Teleport to leave! He could even teleport from a different world directly to the world of the Grand Xia Dynasty!

"You now have two Greater Teleportation Dao-seals." The giant yellow bear flicked his finger, sending the leaf flying towards Ning. Laughing, Ning waved his hand and accepted it.

"Youngflame Nong truly was unfortunate to run into you. His soul was immediately ripped out, giving him no chance to even use the Greater Teleportation Dao-seal." The giant yellow bear continued to investigate. "There's quite a few protective treasures as well. There's a Vajra-Guard Skypearl, a Golden Skyfire seal, a Skyflee shuttle…still, these are quite inferior compared to a Greater Teleportation Dao-seal."

Youngflame Nong actually had three major treasures; the 'Lock' scroll, the black and white disc, and the Greater Teleportation Dao-seal. He had used up two of them. The plan had been to bind the Immortal estate, sell the monstrous Dao-soldiers of the estate to his clan, then use those resources to purchase some truly top-tier treasures. Unfortunately, he would never have the chance to do so.

"Big bro, take a look; isn't that the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater?" The old black bull suddenly pointed to a watery pearl which hovered in the mass of precious items.

"A Sole-Ki Pearl of Elemental Water?" The giant yellow bear hurriedly looked over. His eyes lit up, and he began to laugh loudly. "Ning, you little tyke, it seems it is indeed time for you to reach the Primal level. With this Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater, you can now cultivate a Primaltwin."

Ning called out in surprise, "A Primaltwin?!"

Naturally, Ning knew what a Primaltwin was; virtually all cultivators knew what it was! In the Black-White College, the technique for forming a Primaltwin was something which every single disciple could learn. There was no need for using black-white pellets at all. It was something for everyone to know, but unfortunately, less than one in a thousand Primal Daoists would actually be able to refine a Primaltwin!

This was because…it was too hard to find the right vessel!

When a cultivator broke through from the Wanxiang stage to the Primal stage, the essence of the myriad manifestations of stars and the elemental sea within the Zifu region would crystallize and give birth to a Turtle-Snake 1. At the same time, the soul would descend from the sea of consciousness and sink deep into the Turtle-Snake.

When they fused into one…the Primal Turtle-Snake would be formed! With the Primal Turtle-Snake serving as a physical vessel, and the soul serving as the self, a Primal Daoist would arise from the fusion!

In order to refine a Primaltwin, one would need to find a physical vessel; once one found it, one would use a secret art to split one's soul in two, keeping half the soul in the original body and placing the other half within the vessel and forming a Primaltwin.

"Right. This Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater is like a natural Zifu region," the giant yellow bear laughed. "All you need to do is split out part of your soul and place it within the pearl, and you'll be able to slowly refine it into a Primaltwin! In fact, in the future your Primaltwin would even be able to become an Earth Immortal and perhaps surpass the tribulation and become a Celestial Immortal."

Ning had never even heard of a 'Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater'; in the annals of the Black-White College regarding Primaltwins, the most famous vessel was the 'Darkvalley Pearl'.

"How is it compared to the Darkvalley Pearl?" Ning asked.

"The Darkvalley Pearl is too mediocre," the giant yellow bear said. "A Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater contains the essence of primal, elemental water. After you fuse your soul into it and form your Primaltwin, your body will be formed from the essence of primal water as well. By then, when you use it to train in water-type Daos, you will find it much simpler. It seems as though you are destined to travel very far in the element of water."

The Dao of Rainwater was nothing more than an extremely unremarkable type of Dao that belonged to the element of water, one of the Five Elements.

"How is your soul? Is it capable of withstanding a Primaltwin secret art?" The giant yellow bear asked.

To divide a soul in half was extremely dangerous. The soul had to be sufficiently strong; if it wasn't, then dividing it in half was akin to suicide! Thus, generally speaking, only Primal Daoists who had been at that stage for a very long time or experts who had already reached the Void level and become Earth Immortals would be able to produce a Primaltwin!

"My divine sense stretches to a thousand kilometers," Ning said.

"Mm. There are very few Primal Daoists who have souls comparable to yours; you can compare to a weak Loose Immortal." The giant yellow bear nodded. "You can split your soul in half."

Ning felt a fire begin to blaze in his heart. To produce a Primaltwin at the Wanxiang level; this was far too rare. First of all, the soul had to be strong enough; then, one had to have a vessel, such as the 'Darkvalley Pearl' or the 'Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater'. Thus, for every thousand recinarnated Immortals, perhaps only one would be able to produce a Primaltwin at the Wanxiang stage.

The reason why only those below the Primal stage were allowed to participate in the contests of the Conclave of Immortal Destiny was to ensure fairness!

Although Ning might have refined a Primaltwin, his true body remained at the Wanxiang level. So long as it was only his true body which went to compete, and his Primaltwin stayed out of it…there would be no problems! Ning had already chatted previously with Yu Wei regarding the Conclave, and so he naturally knew about some of the rules of it.

Only geniuses amongst geniuses would be capable of producing Primaltwins at the Wanxiang level; naturally, they wouldn't be barred from participating in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. However, they would only be allowed to use their true bodies to compete; in fact, their Primaltwins wouldn't even be permitted to enter the competition grounds!

"Eh?" The giant yellow bear frowned.

"What is it?" Ning asked.

"A Celestial Immortal has come to Serpentwing Lake," the giant yellow bear said.

"Celestial Immortal?" Ning was shocked. "It must be the Youngflame clan!"

"Don't worry. I can discover him, but he can't discover me." The giant yellow bear said calmly, "Master spent unfathomable amounts of blood, sweat, and effort in order to forge me. There is no one in the entire Grand Xia Dynasty capable of discovering me."

In the air above Serpentwing Lake.

It was already dark. Nine Flood Dragons, pulling an Immortal carriage behind them, had appeared in the skies. Aboard the Immortal carriage sat Patriarch Arcanum, with the Godplume Duke attending to him by the side.

"This is the place where Ji Ning is permanently stationed?" Patriarch Arcanum, with but a single thought, was able to scan this entire region. Brightheart Island was now completely empty; not a single person was present. However, there were still a few people on boats who were sailing aboard Serpentwing Lake. These were ordinary mortals. Given how large Serpentwing Lake was, it would take them a tremendous amount of time to pass through it.

"They fled?" A baleful look appeared in Patriarch Arcanum's eyes. "Kill those mortals."

"Kill them?" The Godplume Duke hesitated.

The Dao of the Heavens was protective of mortals. For Immortal cultivators to kill mortals was a grave sin. Even someone like Patriarch Arcanum, who wanted to kill these mortals, wasn't willing to personally kill them and cause sin to surround him. Even Celestial Immortals would see their luck plummet, and as their luck plummeted…they would run into all sorts of trouble. If Celestial Immortals had sufficiently bad luck, they might end up dying in battle.

"Why aren't you acting yet?" Patriarch Arcanum gave the Godplume Duke a sidelong glance.

"Alright." The Godplume Duke gritted his teeth, then looked at the nine Flood Dragons pulling the Immortal carriage. He sent a spirit-message: "Kill the mortals."

Although none of the nine Flood Dragons wanted to obey, they still all opened their mouths.

Whoooooosh.

Nine streaks of fire descended, instantly sweeping through the entire lake. The commoners on the lake's surface were all shocked and terrified for a moment…and then they transformed into ash. Tendrils of sin instantly descended, with some swirling around the bodies of those nine Flood Dragons, and the rest swirling around the Godplume Duke. A very small amount of sin ended up swirling around Patriarch Arcanum as well.

"Let's go to the City of Ten Thousand Swords." Patriarch Arcanum gave the order, and the nine Flood Dragons pulled the Immortal carriage away, quickly arriving at the City of Ten Thousand Swords, just a few thousand kilometers away.

The City of Ten Thousand Swords remained as it always had been.

Patriarch Arcanum did a quick inspection. His face immediately changed. "There are this many monstrous Dao-soldiers here? Hrm? Ji Ning's master, that Sword Immortal known as Diancai, he is here as well?"

"Hmph." Patriarch Arcanum's temper was volatile, but he knew that there was nothing he could do to this city. He immediately ordered coldly, "Fujun, arrange for the City of Ten Thousand Swords, Western Prefecture City and Serpentwing Lake be under constant watch! This is the homeland of Ji Ning's clan; I refuse to believe he will never return. Also, ask the Heavenly Treasures Mountain to keep a close watch on Ji Ning. Upon discovering his whereabouts, immediately inform our Youngflame clan. No matter where he is hiding, once we discover him, immediately send people to kill him."

"Yes," the Godplume Duke said respectfully.

1. https/en./wiki/Black_Tortoise#/media/File:Wudanghshan-Xuanwu-in-Beijing-Capital-Museum-3796.jpg

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 5 – Immortal Diancai and Ji Ning

"Let's go. We return to the imperial capital!" Patriarch Arcanum gave the order. Immediately, those nine Flood Dragons pulled the Immortal carriage away, disappearing into the skies.

Patriarch Arcanum was a decisive individual. He knew that given that he hadn't discovered Ji Ning right away, if he wanted to capture Ning…he would have to spend quite a bit of time. Although he was a Celestial Immortal, he wasn't omniscient; he still had to resort to using the power of the tribe and the Heavenly Treasures Mountain to find Ning.

Within the City of Ten Thousand Swords.

Immortal Diancai lifted his head, watching as Patriarch Arcanum departed. By his side were Ji Truekeep, Ji Ninfire, and the other members of the Ji clan, along with the two monstrous Loose Immortals.

"Clan leader Ji," Immortal Diancai said, "Patriarch Arcanum has already departed. He wasn't able to find my apprentice, but he won't stay here indefinitely; he's a Celestial Immortal, after all, with an exalted status! However, I imagine he will arrange for some people to stay on watch, here at Swallow Mountain. This is my apprentice's homeland, after all; they will definitely keep an eye on it. Now that your Ji clan has so many monstrous Dao-soldiers present…there's no reason for me to stay here. I won't tarry any longer, then."

"Thank you, senior Immortal," Truekeep and the others said hurriedly.

They felt tremendous gratitude for this Immortal of the Black-White College, who had hurried here at such a critical time. Although he was Ning's master, when trouble came, some masters would flee even faster than their disciples would.

Immortal Diancai didn't say anything else. He soared straight into the skies. The City of Ten Thousand Swords had already set down a grand spacelock formation, preventing teleportation.

Whoosh. After flying high into the sky, Immortal Diancai immediately disappeared.

"This Immortal Diancai truly is a loyal man," the monstrous Immortal Duohe said with a sigh.

"Admirable, admirable," Immortal Witchsui said as well.

"It's true. For Ning to have such a master is his good fortune," Ninefire sighed.

Stillwater City. The Black-White College.

The black-robed, black-haired Immortal Diancai was seated face to face with a short old man. Before the two of them, there was only a flagon of Immortal wine.

"Senior apprentice-brother Fivecraze," Immortal Diancai said softly, "The arrival of Patriarch Arcanum caused me to feel powerless. Ning is my apprentice, my one and only disciple…but I'm not able to do anything in the face of the Youngflame clan's attempt to kill him! I'm completely unable to save him!" As he spoke, Diancai's body was visibly trembling.

"Junior apprentice-brother Diancai," the short elder said hurriedly, "Don't be so stubborn. He's a Celestial Immortal, after all."

"So what if he is? In the past, wasn't senior Northwalker, a Loose Immortal, comparable to a Celestial Immortal in might?" Immortal Diancai growled, "I've made up my mind. Today, I am going to leave. Leave this major world of ours, and temper myself through adventuring. Although I reached the peak of the Void stage long ago and although I can attempt my tribulation, I've been suppressing myself, precisely because I don't feel confident in succeeding. My talent is a bit weaker than this disciple of mine's. If I don't frantically temper myself, most likely, in the end, I won't be able to avoid being overcome by the Celestial Tribulation and becoming a Loose Immortal. After becoming a Loose Immortal…even if I stay alive countless eons and reach senior Northwalker's level of power, what's the point? In the end, I still won't be able to overcome the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, resulting in death."

The short elder was silent for a moment, then said slowly, "It seems your apprentice's matter has affected you tremendously."

"I, his master, have failed him. I am of no use!" Immortal Diancai rose to his feet. "I'll leave now, senior apprentice-brother."

"Be careful!" The short elder said solemnly.

To temper one's self naturally required one to experience deadly situations, to walk on the border between life and death, which would allow one's insights and comprehension to rapidly increase. However, this sort of tempering was extremely dangerous. When walking on a line between life and death, one might truly fall into death.

Immortal Diancai laughed, then charged into the skies, quickly disappearing.

Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish.

Five figures appeared in succession by the short elder's side. These were the other Immortals of the Black-White College.

"He truly is decisive," a youthful-looking 'child' sighed.

"Compared to him…" The tall, muscular, chain-shrouded man said in a low voice, "Although I am a reincarnated Immortal, my Dao-heart isn't as firm as his. It seems the common saying is true; if you fail in one life to become a Celestial Immortal, even if you reincarnated ten times or a hundred times, you still won't be able to become a Celestial Immortal."

"There are still some reincarnated Immortals who do become Celestial Immortals," the short elder said.

"But how few and rare are they?" The youthful-looking child sighed. "With the great determination that junior apprentice-brother Diancai has…as I see it, he might have just increased his chances of becoming a Celestial Immortal by a bit. He may very well truly have a shot at becoming only the second Celestial Immortal the Black-White College has seen in our ancient history."

"He does indeed have a shot," the tall, blood-robed, skinny youth said with a nod. "However…the Celestial Tribulation is difficult to overcome!"

All of them fell silent. The Celestial Tribulation? This was a nightmare for all Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals. The worst part of it was, every single Celestial Tribulation was different in power; just because one was strong, didn't mean they would necessarily succeed in overcoming it!

"First, junior apprentice-brother Diancai needs to return safely. Otherwise, there's no point in discussing the Celestial Tribulation." The short elder's eyes were filled with anticipation. "I wonder if I, a crazy old madman, will be able to see him again before I die."

Within another world. The underwater estate.

Ning had no idea as to what had happened in the outside world. His attention was completely focused on the Primaltwin secret art; this was a soul-splitting technique, and he had to be incredibly cautious in using it.

Ning was seated in the lotus position on a prayer mat. Not too far away, the giant yellow bear and the old black bull were staring at him.

"He won't fail, will he?" The old black bull said worriedly They had already set up a barrier around them, preventing their voices from reaching out and disturbing Ning.

"Ji Ning's visualization technique is an extremely impressive one. Even if he fails, he would at most lose control over half of his soul; he wouldn't die," the giant yellow bear said.

"Lose control over half his soul…" The old black bull murmured to himself. That was still quite severe.

If the Primaltwin art was a success, the soul would be split in two, but both parts would still remain in existence. Although Ning would temporarily be weakened, that would be a minor matter, and he would soon recover. If, however, one of the two parts of his soul was to be completely extinguished, Ning's personality might change drastically. He might even develop mental issues such as depression or madness.

To lose control over half of one's soul…this could indeed cause a drastic personality change.

Huff. Puff. Ning took several long breaths, completely calm. He had already memorized and mentally repeated the Primaltwin art several times now.

"Let's begin."

Ning shut his eyes.

Within his sea of consciousness. The spirit-Ning stood there, entire body emanating with sword-ki. This was an evolved sword-soul! Sword-souls were almost utterly indestructible, making a split even more difficult.

Whooooooosh. The forehead of the spirit-Ning began to glow with light, a vertical-shaped light. Ning used all of his energy in executing the secret art, causing his own divine will to form into a knife that began to cut both upwards and downwards from his forehead.

That vertical light slowly began to elongate.

"Arggggggh!" Agony. The soul-ripping agony caused even Ning, despite his incredible endurance and Dao-heart, to tremble. However, generally speaking, those who dared to execute the Primaltwin technique were all extraordinary figures who would be able to endure this level of pain.

The vertical light continued to elongate. It reached his neck…his chest…his abdomen…

The vertical light splitting the 'body' of the spirit-Ning had completely cut him in half. It was as though a ray of light had just cleanly bisected him. However, this wasn't the dangerous part; what was going to happen next was the dangerous part.

"SPLIT!"

Ning's soul began to split apart. That vertical light splitting his spirit in half separated, causing his spirit to split into two parts. One half, moving as fast as lightning, flew back into Ning's physical body. In the instant his soul split apart, Ning felt a wave of dizziness overcome him, and while flying over his soul trembled as well. Ning's Dao-heart, however, was resilient, and so although the dizziness caused him to feel incredibly tired, he was still able to withstand it.

This was a step that had to be fast and had to be endured. Otherwise, if the other half of the soul wasn't able to enter the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater, it would die on the way. After splitting the soul, there was no way to merge it again.

"Enter."

The other half of the soul flew out like a streak of light, entering the Sole-Ki Pearl.

In the instant it did, the soul felt as though it was a son entering the embrace of the other, a wandering, adrift boat that had finally returned to harbor. There was a feeling of peace, of warmth, of calm which completely filled the soul. The soul had its vessel…naturally, it felt nice.

"Whew." Ning let out a sigh of relief.

"visualization technique!"

For the moment, Ning had no time to waste on training his Primaltwin. His very first response was to immediately have both of his souls immediately execute the visualization technique.

Within his sea of consciousness.

The now-shrunken spirit-Ning sat down in the lotus position. Ahead of him, within the vast void of his sea of consciousness, appeared an enormous image of Maiden Nuwa. The image of Maiden Nuwa, in the void, seemed to press down upon both the past and the future. It was eternal and unchanging, and it caused Ning's soul to become incomparably stable as well. The aura of divine light emanating from her, filled with boundless warmth, illuminated Ning's soul, causing the badly damaged soul to begin to heal.

Within the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater, there was the second, also-shrunken spirit-Ning, who was also visualizing an image of Maiden Nuwa. When her image appeared, her light seemed to stretch off into infinity.

Both souls were in a wounded state right now, but they rapidly began to heal. This healing process took nearly three full days, during the course of which both souls grew considerably stronger.

"Whew." Ning opened his eyes. The Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater in front of him flew up as well, landing within his hand.

"How did it go?" The giant yellow bear asked hurriedly, "How is your soul?"

"I've healed to roughly seventy percent of normal," Ning said.

"Seventy percent?!" The giant yellow bear was stunned. "It seems you truly do have a formidable visualization technique."

When the soul split into two, both souls would have roughly half of the strength of the former soul. For an ordinary visualization technique, the user would be lucky to see each half-soul stabilize at fifty percent power. You could forget about having the soul quickly grow back! But Ning had not only stabilized his souls, he had already reached seventy percent power.

"However, this is a one-time thing. After all, the damage caused by the soul-splitting was fresh, which was why I was able to heal so much of it at one go. In the future, it will be slower. To return to a divine sense of a thousand kilometers…I'm afraid it will take a long time," Ning sighed.

"Don't be too greedy. You've already produced a Primaltwin, after all; this represents a second life for you," the giant yellow bear sighed. "Your Primaltwin can also become an Earth Immortal or Celestial Immortal; in fact, if your true body dies, your Primaltwin will still survive."

Laughing, Ning nodded.

The true body and the Primaltwin had linked memories; in all other ways, however, they were completely independent. Indeed, a Primaltwin could be described as a second life.

"Hurry up and begin your training. Completely refine all of the essence within the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater," the giant yellow bear laughed.

"Right." Ning nodded, then had his Primaltwin within the Sole-Ki Pearl begin to train.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 6 – Primal Breakthrough

The Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater was a naturally occurring spirit-treasure that was one of the most superb resources for nourishing the soul.

There were some Immortal cultivators who, believing their Zifu's to be damaged, would steal the bodies of others. This sort of possession, however…had a major problem. It was that the affinity between the body and the soul would be very weak. Generally speaking, most bodies were not of very high quality. Some Immortal cultivators, upon finding a good body, would seize it. Once their affinity with it reached a certain level, they would be extremely satisfied.

However, the likes of the Darkvalley Pearl, the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater, and other such naturally occurring spirit-treasures were truly perfect vessels. Because they had never been inhabited by a soul, once a soul did enter them, they would merge together perfectly. In terms of quality, as naturally occurring spirit-treasures, they were of course of superb quality.

"It was lucky for me that Youngflame Nong had procured this. If I were to search for it on my own, where the hell would I even start?" Ji Ning had begun his refining process, and as he did, he instantly realized how wonderful this pearl was. He couldn't help but sigh to himself, "Youngflame Nong must have prepared this for himself. However, in the end, his efforts ended up being for my sake."

Sole-Ki Pearls of Primalwater were filled with elemental essence to begin with; there was thus no need to absorb elemental ki from the surrounding world. One only needed to refine the ki within it. Ning was currently rising in power at a rapid rate.

BOOM!

A world suddenly came into being within the pearl. A Zifu region was born, and large amounts of elemental water essence began to transform, causing the Zifu region to expand in size.

Stars. The Moon. The Golden Crown. Three major Manifestations appeared…and the body immediately broke through to the Wanxiang level.

"This sort of 'training' truly is wonderful." The old black bull, watching, couldn't help but sigh in amazement, "What tremendous speed."

"It's just like when a reincarnated Immortal regains his memories. He already had the sufficient insights and a strong enough Dao-heart. Given that the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater has condensed water elemental essence within it to begin with, it wouldn't even surprise me if he trained all the way to the Primal stage," the giant yellow bear said. These sorts of treasures, which contained elemental essence within them, would generally allow those who used them to reach the Primal stage. One couldn't help but sigh at how marvelous the treasures of the natural world could be.

"He's about to make a breakthrough," the old black bull suddenly said.

After just an hour, the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater had risen in power from the Xiantian level to the peak of the Wanxiang level. It was currently moving towards the Primal level.

Within the pearl. There was a vast, empty void here. The Zifu Lake was almost infinitely vast, and within the sky of this world, thousands of stars, a Jade Rabbit, and a Golden Crow hung in the sky. The aura of this place was even more powerful than the aura of Ning's true body. This was because this body had truly reached the absolute peak of the peak Wanxiang stage!

"Arise!"

Ning's soul was above the thousands of stars, at the very heart of the void in his Zifu region. He willed it…and instantly, the sea of elemental energy in his Zifu began to frantically condense into trillions of specks of purified light that wildly soared into the skies, towards those stars, the moon, and the sun, all of which were beginning to move in accordance with a secret rhythm. In the instant in which they all merged into the heavenly bodies, the stars, the Jade Rabbit, and the Golden Crow, all of which had already reached their limit long ago, suddenly transformed into pillars of light that shot downwards.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

Tens of thousands of pillars of light, some thin, some thick. The pillars of light created from the countless stars appeared very thin, while the pillars of light from the Golden Crow and the Moon Rabbit were clearly far thicker.

The countless pillars of light all focused on the central part of the Zifu, beginning to slowly form into an enormous creature.

The enormous creature was beginning to take shape. The light from the Golden Crow was focusing on its head, forming a tortoise-like beast. The light from the Jade Rabbit was beginning to focus on the other side, forming a serpent's head. The countless beams of light from the stars were beginning to form the body of the creature. The massive thing began to take clearer and clearer form; it was a mutant beast that looked like a turtle with a snake intertwined within it.

This was a legendary creature; the Turtle-Snake!

Any living creature, upon breaking through to the Primal level, would form a Primal Turtle-Snake.

Rumble….

In that instant, the enormous Turtle-Snake suddenly seemed to move. It actually began to crawl downwards, through the void, until it reached the elemental sea. Within that vast elemental sea of energy, the enormous, island-like Turtle-Snake began to slowly swim about.

"The Turtle-Snake has been formed. Let the Primal soul descend!"

Instantly, Ning's soul, which had remained hovering in the sky this entire time, descended directly into the enormous Turtle-Snake. As it entered the creature's body, it felt an incomparably comfortable sensation. It was as though the body of the Turtle-Snake was innately nurturing to souls; Ning could even feel his own soul begin to strengthen at an alarming speed.

"What a shocking speed of advancement. The rate at which my soul is strengthening is even faster than the rate at which it was healing when I visualized the image of Maiden Nuwa." Ning sighed in absolute amazement. He finally understood why it was that although many Immortal cultivators had fairly weak souls at the Wanxiang stage, upon reaching the Primal stage, they would all quickly come to possess divine sense.

It was precisely because, within the Primal Turtle-Snake, the soul would strengthen at an astonishing rate! It was like grass being sown into mud, then quickly growing out of it.

Rumble…

The Turtle-Snake swiveled there. Yin and Yang intersected on the back of the Turtle-Snake, which is to say, it's shell. Suddenly, a golden flame emerged, blazing with incomparable heat and yet not harming the Primal Turtle-Snake in the slightest. This was the 'Primal Fire' which every single Primal Daoist was capable of using.

Whooooooosh. The enormous Turtle-Snake swam about happily in the vast sea of elemental ki. The eyes of both the turtle-head and the snake-head both seemed extremely lively and clever, as though they were true living creatures.

As for the thousands of stars, the Golden Crow, and the Jade Rabbit, they continued to send down their condensed elemental essence. Bathed by it, the Turtle-Snake was still continuing to slowly grow.

After another long period of time, the stars, the Golden Crow, and the Jade Rabbit finally stopped sending down essence.

"The early Primal stage!" The giant Primal Turtle-Snake spoke out in the human tongue. "The energy within the Sole-Ki Pearl of Primalwater truly is remarkable. It was only used up after I trained all the way to the early Primal stage, then solidified my base."

In the instant he had become a Primal Daoist, there had actually also been a sudden change in the surrounding elemental ki aura of the underwater estate. In addition, the ancient, eternal aura of the Dao itself had also descended.

"He made the breakthrough." The giant yellow bear and the old black bull both laughed. Very soon, mist suddenly began to emerge from the pearl, which had been hovering in midair…and then the mist solidified into a black-robed Ji Ning.

"Greetings, seniors," the black-robed Ji Ning laughed.

"Take a look at your original body," the giant yellow bear said with a smirk.

The black-robed Ning turned his head. The original Ning turned his head as well. Their gazes intersected.

"Hahaha…" The two both laughed.

Actually, their memories were linked; it was as though one was the left hand, while the other was the right hand. As they exchanged glances, their thoughts were identical; this was, indeed, an extremely marvelous feeling.

"Greetings, fellow Daoist," the black-robed Ning said..

"Greetings, fellow Daoist," the other Ning also said.

And then, both laughed. With identical memories and thoughts, saying 'greetings, fellow Daoist' to each other was like mumbling to himself. It was nothing more than a joke.

"How does it feel?" The giant yellow bear asked.

"Very good," the black-robed Ning nodded. "Breaking through to the Primal level feels very different. The soul fused with the Primal Turtle-Dragon, which felt incomparably comfortable. It is also advancing very rapidly."

"Right. Generally speaking, upon breaking through to the Primal level, the rate of advancement for the soul will be very fast for a period of time. Afterwards, it will slow down, and in fact the soul might advance very little even after a century passes," the giant yellow bear said.

The black-robed Ning nodded. "Although the Primal Turtle-Snake is of tremendous help to the soul, everything has a limit. If the soul were to continue to rise at this rate perpetually, that would be ridiculous!"

"Let me first try the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] with this Primaltwin and see how it is." The black-robed Ning willed it, and suddenly, a dense cluster of more than seven hundred flying swords appeared. Nine were the Nethercold swords, while 360 were high-grade fire-attribute Earth-ranked flying swords, and another 360 were high-grade water-attribute Earth-ranked flying swords.

He had picked these flying swords out from the vast ocean of magic treasures left behind by Immortal Witchriver in the estate. Ning had procured more than sixteen thousand magic treasures. With flying swords being one of the most common types of magic treasures, it hadn't been too hard for him to find some that were suited to him.

"[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]!"

The black-robed Ning willed the formation to immediately activated. Previously, when activing the formation, Ning had always used the Nethercold swords first, then led the other 720 Mortal-ranked flying swords with them! Now, however, with all 720 Mortal-ranked flying swords having been changed into Earth-ranked flying swords, the difficulty of controlling the swords instantly increased more than a hundredfold. After all, he had upgraded far too many swords.

"Eh?!" The black-robed Ning frowned.

"How is it?" The old black bull laughed.

"I wanted to activate the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, but I'm unable to." The black-robed Ning shook his head, then began to lower the level. The eighth level? The seventh level?

Whoosh!

Finally, he successfully activated the technique. More than five hundred flying swords swiveled about Ning, beginning to levitate up and down. Ning's Primal-level elemental ki filled them, and his soul commanded them. Before his chest solidified an incomparably brilliant flying sword, which was even covered with a layer of prismatic white light.

"The seventh level [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]." The black-robed Ning shook his head. "I broke through to the Primal level, and my elemental ki has increased in power dramatically. However, my soul is still somewhat weaker than it was, before it split in two. Even though I've gained much enlightenment regarding the Dao…I'm still unable to go past the seventh level."

"These are, after all, all Earth-ranked magic treasures, and most are high-grade. Even the seventh level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] is still more powerful than the ninth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] with those Mortal-ranked flying sword," the giant yellow bear said.

The black-robed Ning nodded in agreement.

"Right. Just now, I took a look at your other treasures," the giant yellow bear said, pointing towards the other magic treasures, all separated by type. "Some of the sacks have quite a few golems in them."

The black-robed Ning nodded. "These are the golems that we discovered in the Witchriver Immortal Estate. That Fiendgod collected them."

"Let me help you retrofit these golems. Otherwise, they won't listen to your commands," the giant yellow bear said. "Right; don't you have fifty thousand kilograms of liquefied elemental essence? Hurry up and refine it all. You are only at the early Primal level, right? Raise your power a bit more. That way, your elemental ki will grow more pure, and it will be easier for you to control your magic treasures. By then, I imagine you'll be able to control the eighth, or even the ninth, level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]."

The black-robed Ning nodded. "Right." There was no reason not to use them up; it was best to use the liquid to improve his own power. Fifty thousand kilograms? This was more than enough to allow his Primaltwin to once more improve its power dramatically.

"In the future, I need to focus on the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation," the black-robed Ning mused to himself. Although he had read many secret manuals, amongst those that were meant for Ki Refiners, the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] remained the best suited for him, and the most powerful one as well. His Primaltwin was a Ki Refiner; there was no way it could train in divine abilities, and so it naturally would have to focus on the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation].

It was destined that his Primaltwin would become an extremely powerful ki-refining Sword Immortal!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter

Chapter 7 – Binding the Underwater Estate

Within the quiet hall. The black-robed Ning sat in the lotus position, a jade bottle in front of him. The liquefied elemental essence within it was continuously flowing into Ning's mouth.

"Heh heh heh." The old black bull watched, quite excited. He had been alone for far, far too long.

As for the giant yellow bear, he waved a paw and two giant sacks opened up. The golems within all flew out, howling through the air. A total of thirty-six Qiongqi Manticore Golems, along with a black-armored male golem, emerged. As they flew out, they began to frantically struggle, trying to fight back.

"Be good and be obedient," the giant yellow bear chuckled merrily. The thirty-six Qiongqi golems and the black-armored man all hung there in midair. Although they were struggling, there were unable to move at all, causing them to all reveal looks of amazement.

"Who are you?" The black-armored man stared at the giant yellow bear, then shouted, "Why are you confining us?"

"Oh, you actually have a soul planted inside you?" The giant yellow bear then shook his head. "Who made these golems? He was so rough and clumsy."

Clatter clatter clatter…

The thirty-six Qiongqi golems and the black-armored man all suddenly separated into tens of thousands of component parts.

"Let me first collect the parts. I'll slowly reconfigure them." The giant yellow bear had a look of anticipation in his eyes. He waved a paw, and whoosh, all of the tens of thousands of parts disappeared, having been teleported away.

"Ji Ning, kid," the giant yellow bear said. "I'm going to go analyze these golems and wipe out some of the seals the former controller placed on them. After fixing them up, I'll return them to you."

"No rush," Ning laughed. Ning himself wasn't training; it was currently the Primaltwin, the 'black-robed Ji Ning', who was training.

Time slowly passed on. Finally, all of the fifty thousand kilograms of liquefied elemental essence in the jade bottle had been used up. The black-robed Ning opened his eyes, revealing a look of joy in them.

"Ji Ning, how is it?" The old black bull asked eagerly.

"Just as I used up the liquefied elemental essence, I finally reached the late Primal stage," the black-robed Ning said. "Let me test the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] first."

Swish. Once again, more than seven hundred flying swords appeared. The Earth-ranked flyinig swords, led by the Nethercold Sword Formation, all flew into the air. However, even after trying his hardest for a long period of time, Ning was still unable to control them well, and was only able to execute the eighth level of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]. "My elemental ki is far more pure than it was before, but I'm still only able to use the eighth level?"

"Ji Ning, you've already reached the Primal level with your Primaltwin. By using it, you can go and bind this underwater estate now," the giant yellow bear said.

"Bind the estate?" Ning willed it, and suddenly, the Primaltwin transformed into a pearl that flew into Ning's clothes.

"Come with me." The giant yellow bear walked forward.

Ning felt tremendous anticipation. He had waited for this day for a very, very long time. When he had become a Zifu Disciple, he had only been able to bind a talisman; now, after having created his Primaltwin, he was finally going to be able to bind the underwater estate. Afterwards, he would be able to carry it around with him, just like Immortal Juhua had.

He followed the giant yellow bear through a wide, spacious corridor that he previously hadn't been given access to at all.

"From now on, you will be granted access into 90% of the areas of the underwater estate," the giant yellow bear said. "After binding the underwater estate, you'll be able to carry it with you."

"90%? Senior, are you saying that there are still areas which I cannot enter?" Ning asked.

"Right. For example, the Divine Abilities Hall; you cannot enter it. There are some other regions as well." The giant yellow bear gave Ning a glance. "I imagine that you have already guessed…that at the Primal stage, you are only able to do a very basic binding of the estate, allowing you to carry it with you. To truly master all of its mysteries, you will need to wait until the day you become an Empyrean God and truly become Master's disciple."

Ning nodded. He had expected this all along. Earlier, he had watched as the giant yellow bear had effortlessly paralyzed in midair and rendered immobile the black-armored male golem, which was comparable to a peak Loose Immortal. In addition, Ning could sense the ancient aura of eternity emanating from the giant yellow bear, an aura that was even more heart-shaking than the aura which emanated from the Fiendgod he had encountered in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. To completely master the underwater estate as a Primal Daoist? Even Ning himself felt that he was far from being able to do so.

"Empyrean God?" Ning murmured to himself, "Daoist Threelives, what in the world did you leave behind, that I have to become an Empyrean God before receiving it?"

They walked through the corridor and thorugh various passages. Soon, they arrived at an ancient, simple room. Ning walked in, immediately feeling as though his heart was more peaceful than it ever had been before.

"This is the Still Room. In the past, Master personally set down a Buddhist formation, the 'Grand Bodhi Stillheart Formation', in this place. Amongst all the mind-calming formations known throughout the Three Realms, this formation ranks close to the top. Its name is ordinary, but its power is extraordinary." The giant yellow bear pointed at the giant, vast room with a claw. Instantly, an incomparably complicated golden formation appeared on the walls. Ning felt dizzy just looking at it. "This formation isn't something you can try to comprehend yet. One glance is enough; don't stare at it."

The complicated golden formation covering the four walls of the place once more dimmed.

"Look." The giant yellow bear pointed at the center of the Still Room. There was a platform there, atop which was an ordinary-looking, inky jade bed which emanated a frigid aura. "This is made from netherwater jade, retrieved from the deepest depths of the Nine Hells. It is extremely cold. When you first sit atop it, you feel feel extremely cold, but soon afterwards, you will feel very comfortable, and also feel it help to calm your heart. This jade bed alone is comparable in value to a Pure Yang magic treasure."

Ning's heart clenched, hard. A Pure Yang magic treasure? Daoist Threelives truly was wealthy and generous.

"However, don't even think about selling it. This is already part of the underwater estate; there's no way for you to pull it off." The corners of the giant yellow bear's mouth twitched upwards, a hint of smug amusement visible. "Haha, enough joking. The Still Room is the center of the entire underwater estate. All you need to do is bind it, and you'll have a basic control over the underwater estate. Go ahead and start the binding process."

Ning nodded, walking straight towards the inky jade bed.

Upon sitting atop it, he did indeed feel a heart-penetrating chill instantly fill his entire body. Even his soul seemed to have been frozen solid, but immediately afterwards, he felt calmer than he ever had before.

A void-soul! His soul was in a state of complete transcendence. Ning began to carefully go through and dissect every single thing which had happened to him recently. This sort of reflection and contemplation of one's memories caused Ning's Dao-heart to slowly strengthen even further.

"This is incredible. The Buddhist formation, 'Bodhi Stillheart Formation', and the netherwater jade truly are extraordinary." Ning hesitated no longer. With but a thought, he unleashed the black-robed Ning, who also sat down atop the netherwater jade, then began to use his powerful elemental ki to fill the Still Room and bind it to him.

The Still Room was slowly becoming bound. Time flowed on…

This binding process took six full days! And this was only the first, most elementary binding possible for the underwater estate.

"What a truly marvelous feeling." It felt as though every part of the entire underwater estate was under his control, but the strange thing was, although he felt as though he was in complete control, the Divine Abilities Hall seemed to have vanished, as though it didn't exist.

"Weird." Ning returned to the main hall. Within the main hall, the giant yellow bear and the old black bull were both present.

"Senior, did you forget about something?" Ning asked.

"What is it?" The giant yellow bear looked towards Ning.

"The treasures which Immortal Juhua left behind." Ning couldn't help but say, "I've already bound the underwater estate…where are his treasures?" The treasures of Immortal Juhua, the disassembled golems…although Ning could sense the entire estate, he couldn't find any trace of those things. And, right now, Ning didn't feel any sense of control over the giant yellow bear either.

"Oh, I almost forgot." The giant yellow bear waved a hand.

Whoosh! Instantly, a mountain of magic treasures appeared within the hall. It truly was a mountain! A treasure mountain that was hundreds on hundreds of meters in height. Ning's eyes instantly lit up upon seeing it.

"After living for a few million years, he really did accumulate quite a bit of treasure." The giant yellow bear shook his head. "Immortal Juhua left behind a total of three Immortal-ranked magic treasures, and each one of them could be considered high-grade for Immortal-ranked treasures."

Ning's eyes instantly began to shine. Three? And all high-grade?

Immortal Juhua really lived up to his reputation as a Loose Immortal who had lived for millions of years, a figure even more powerful than Immortal Northwalker. Most likely, even the Immortal artifacts owned by actual Celestial Immortals were only on par with his at best.

"Still, only one is left," the giant yellow bear continued, pointing towards the old black bull. "Him."

"Just one?!" Ning was flabbergasted. "Didn't you say there were three? Immortal Juhua left three behind, right? The fourth master of the estate died at the Wanxiang level; there's no way he could've taken away the Immortal-ranked magic treasures. Where'd the other two go?"

Was this a joke? Two high-grade Immortal-ranked magic treasures had just 'gone missing'?!

"Don't be in such a rush. It's a good thing for you that two of them are gone now," the old black bull said smugly. "You still have me, right? Ji Ning, kiddo, in the future, this old bull is going to follow you, and you are enormously lucky to have me."

Ning was still filled with puzzlement. What about the other two Immortal-ranked magic treasures? The spirit of the estate wouldn't have embezzled them, would he?

The giant yellow bear said, "The three Immortal-ranked magic treasures left behind by Immortal Juhua were the 'Thousandbull Sword', the 'Nightriver Painting', and the 'Nine Realms Seal'."

"The Nightriver Painting was chosen by Immortal Juhua as his reward after he overcame the seventh level of the Wargod Hall, a high-grade Immortal-ranked magic treasure. Within it, it held an ancient river from the primordial era that came before the three thousand major worlds were born; the Nightriver. By drawing the enemy into the painting, the enemy would be within your domain and dramatically weakened, while you would be able to borrow from the power of the Nightriver to increase your own might. One of the reasons why Immortal Juhua was so famous was because of this magic treasure," the giant yellow bear said.

Ning listened, speechless. What fine treasures! Compared to the Nightriver Painting, the Azuresilk Godfire Lamp was far too inferior. That was a primordial river, the Nightriver, which existed before the three thousand major worlds had been born!

"The Nine Realms Seal was fashioned by Immortal Juhua from the extract of materials collected by Immortal Juhua after wandering nine different major worlds. This seal…naturally, it's used to smash and crush. He used up an astonishing amount of precious materials in fashioning it, managing to brute-force it up to be a high-grade Immortal-ranked seal. In his old age, Immortal Juhua loved to smash people with the seal."

"The Thousandbull Sword…when Immortal Juhua met the Thousand Swords Immortal, the two exchanged blows. After killing the Thousand Swords Immortal and acquiring hundreds of valuable flying swords, he traded them for precious materials, using them and other treasures he had accumulated in forging a flying sword. Immortal Juhua was also a Sword Immortal; the most important thing for a Sword Immortal is their flying swords. The Thousandbull Sword was thus the weapon he used in order to dominate the world."

Ning listened, spellbound and rapt. He couldn't help but ask, "Then what happened to the Nightriver Painting and the Nine Realms Seal?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.

Report chapter