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

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Read The Desolate Era - Chapter 32 – A Silent Prayer online free - Novel Full

Chapter 32 – A Silent Prayer

Nightfall. A cold wind was howling through the air. Within the Youngflame clan's estate.

The current clan leader of the Youngflame Clan, the Godplume Duke, was currently seated in his study. He had no desire to keep reading through the book he was holding. There was just a single thought in his mind; had the assassination of Ji Ning succeeded?

Tonight, Kindwater Xiaolou had invited Ji Ning to a banquet. Immortal Floatcloud was going to take the chance to assassinate Ji Ning. Naturally, the Godplume Duke knew of this plan. He was waiting for the results.

Crack!

The Godplume Duke suddenly turned to look at the life-tablet placed at the edges of his table. This was the life-tablet of Immortal Floatcloud, and at this moment, it had shattered.

"Floatcloud died. It seems the assassination attempt was made. However, I don't know if it was a success or not." The Godplume Duke took a deep breath. Regardless of whether it had succeeded or not, Floatcloud would perish. If he succeeded, then he would go reincarnate; if he failed, his soul would be shattered.

Time slowly passed…

The Godplume Duke continued to quietly wait for news to arrive.

A long time later.

"Clan leader." An azure-robed servant charged in, then immediately whispered, "We have word."

"Speak," the Godplume Duke said calmly.

"Immortal Floatcloud attempted to assassinate Ji Ning in Cloudwater Manor, and he even used the Bloodcoil Heavenlock Formation, engaging in a one-on-one fight with Ji Ning within it. But Ji Ning suddenly produced a Primaltwin and killed Immortal Floatcloud," the azure-robed servant said.

The Godplume Duke had an ugly look on his face. He hesitated for a moment, then said with a frown, "You said Ji Ning's Primaltwin killed Immortal Floatcloud? But his true body is only at the Wanxiang level; can it be that his Primaltwin has already trained to the Void-level and become an Earth Immortal?"

"His Primaltwin should be at the Primal level," the azure-robed servant said. "There shouldn't be any mistake about this."

The Godplume Duke sat there quietly pondering, and the azure-robed servant didn't dare to make another sound.

After pondering for quite some time, the Godplume Duke said coldly, "Immortal Floatcloud was a Loose Immortal of my Youngflame clan; how dare he act in such an audacious way? Without receiving permission from my Youngflame clan, he actually dared to go attempt to assassinate Ji Ning on his own accord! This is a violation of the laws of the clan. Inform the outside world that Immortal Floatcloud violated the laws of the clan and has been expelled from the Youngflame clan, and is no longer a member of the clan. Also – blot out his name from the Youngflame clan registrar."

"Yes," the azure-robed servant said respectfully.

"Go now." The Godplume Duke waved his hand, and the azure-robed servant hurriedly retreated. As for the Godplume Duke himself, he sat there quietly for a long moment. This wasn't the news he had wanted; in fact, it was the worst news possible. Ji Ning had actually been able to rely on his own power to kill Immortal Floatcloud. Then killing Ji Ning…was truly going to be difficult.

"He's trained for thirty years, but is already so formidable; he needs to be killed. But in the imperial capital…killing him will be as hard as ascending to heaven. I imagine that we'll have to wait for him to leave the city before our Youngflame clan will be able to use all of the methods available to us to deal with him. But who knows how long we will have to wait before Ji Ning will leave?" The Godplume Duke quietly pondered this issue. "I can only hope that his true body will be killed in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny by other supreme geniuses! His true body has far more potential than his Primaltwin does; so long as it dies, then his threat will be greatly lessened."

Although the Primaltwin was currently more powerful than Ning's true body, without question, the true body had more potential and a much more solid foundation.

"It's time to pay a visit Patriarch Arcanum." In truth, the Godplume Duke felt some resentment as well. This was all because Patriarch Arcanum had doted on Youngflame Nong too much; otherwise, how could all of this nonsense have occurred?

"Once news of this battle spreads, the various major powers of the imperial capital will most likely all learn about Ji Ning. My Youngflame clan will have truly lost face." The Godplume Duke shook his head. Then, by himself, he boarded his Immortal carriage and departed from the imperial capital to go pay his respects to Patriarch Arcanum.

After the Imperial Guards under the command of Xiamang Hong returned to their headquarters, the news that Ning's Primaltwin had killed a Loose Immortal quickly spread throughout the entire headquarters. The Imperial Guard was the most important military which guarded the imperial capital; all of the various major clans had disciples within it, and so this news quickly spread to all of the major clans as well.

Now they all understood that it wasn't that Ji Ning didn't know his own limits; rather, it was that he did indeed have enough ability to back up his actions.

Stillwater Commander. The Black-White College.

Amongst the powers that paid the most attention to Ning, the one which cared the most was the Black-White College. Within the Headmaster's Hall of the Black-White College.

"Apprentice-nephew headmaster, why have you asked us to all gather here?"

"Senior apprentice-brother, for what reason have you asked us to hurry here so late at night?"

The first generation Immortals and the second generation Primal Daoists who were gathered within the hall all spoke out to ask questions.

"Don't be impatient. Listen to me read this intelligence report."

Daoist Jadesea, the Headmaster, was holding a copy of an intelligence report sent from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. He read aloud, "Tonight, in the Kindwater clan's Cloudwater Manor located in the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, Kindwater Xiaolou hosted a banquet for Ji Ning. Ji Ning attended with a troop of Golden Imperials. Halfway through the banquet, Immortal Floatcloud suddenly appeared. He first used a Whitebone Immortal Slaying Needle to ambush Ji Ning, who was heavily injured but managed to stay alive. Immortal Floatcloud then utilized the Bloodcoil Heavenlock Formation to seal off the surrounding area, then engaged in a one-on-one fight with Ji Ning. Ji Ning's Primaltwin suddenly emerged. His Primaltwin had already reached the peak Primal level. By using a sword formation technique involving hundreds of Heaven-ranked flying swords, he executed Immortal Floatcloud."

The hall was completely silent.

Everyone was speechless for a moment…and then, a storm of commotion.

"Apprentice-nephew headmaster, are you sure about what you read?"

"Do you speak the truth?"

"Ji Ning's Primaltwin killed Immortal Floatcloud?"

None of them could believe it. Many of them had actually been present when Ning had joined the school. That little fellow who had only been a Zifu Disciple…after just ten or so years, he had killed a Loose Immortal? Was this a joke?

"This is a report from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. How could they lie about something like this?" Daoist Jadesea looked at his fellow disciples.

"Wonderful, wonderful." Immortal Fivecraze called out, "This is absolutely wonderful. Spread the news. Let all of the disciples of our Black-White College learn of this matter!"

Some would celebrate, some would mourn. News of Ning's battle spread throughout the entire imperial capital, and it also spread to the ears of certain people located in many other commandery cities. Some celebrated, some sighed in amazement, some felt jealousy, and some felt disdain.

Highwater Commander. The Dongyan Mountains.

Late night. Within a mountain peak inside the Dongyan Mountains.

Ninelotus was seated by herself at the edges of a cliff. The cold night wind felt as sharp as knives of ice, but Ninelotus allowed the wind to blow against her as she continued to sit there silently. Ever since she and Ning had parted ways at the Witchriver Immortal Estate, Ninelotus had begun to enjoy sitting by herself in this quiet place at night, a time of absolute stillness. She would just watch quietly until the sun rose.

"Little Yun." Suddenly, a voice rang out. Ninelotus turned to look. A very beautiful woman walked over; it was her mother.

Ninelotus' mother looked at her daughter, feeling quite pained for her. Ninelotus and her were extremely close. When Ninelotus had returned from the Witchriver Immortal Estate, she had been truly been heartbroken, but had no one to talk to about it. Her mother had consoled her, and eventually, Ninelotus had told her mother about the pain in her heart. Only then did her mother realize that her daughter had very nearly chosen to completely walk the same path with Ji Ning.

"Little Yun, are you still not over it?" The mother sat down as well, looking at her daughter.

"I've been over it for quite some time," Ninelotus said, gently shaking her head. "I just continue to feel ashamed."

"If you feel ashamed, how can you say you are over it?" Her mother shook her head. "No need to be ashamed. This Ji Ning, he isn't worth you feeling ashamed over. He just came from a backwater clan; how good could his upbringing have possibly been? The two of you belong in completely separate worlds. There's no way the two of you could've been together. No way at all."

"Enough," Ninelotus said softly.

"You are going to command the entire Dongyan clan, and the Forefather of the Dongyan clan has full faith in you. You need to stir yourself up. You might not be able to forget about him now, but in a few centuries or millennia, you'll realize that he was actually just a very ordinary passerby in your life. Nothing more than a bumpkin. Forget about him," Ninelotus' mother said.

Before Ninelotus was born, her mother and her father had decent lives in the Dongyan clan, but were quite ordinary figures. However, after Ninelotus was born, she was loved and doted upon by the Dongyan clan's Forefather, who trained her and assigned her to be the next clan leader. Thus, Ninelotus' father and mother saw their statuses skyrocket, and they now had a very great deal of power within the Dongyan clan.

"He isn't a bumpkin." Ninelotus stared at her mother. "He is my former Dao-companion, and a true genius!"

"And what good is a genius? He might just end up being killed by the Youngflame clan," her mother said angrily.

"Enough!" Ninelotus was growing angry as well.

Her mother forced down her anger. Ninelotus was the next clan leader, after all, and so normally she and her husband would listen to Ninelotus. But with regards to Ji Ning…the mother had always nursed a belly full of anger. How exalted a status did her daughter have? How could she possibly be together with someone who came from a backwater tribe? That was an absolute travesty.

"Mistress, mistress!" Suddenly, a female servant flew in on a flying sword, landing on the mountain peak.

"Mm?" Ninelotus looked at her servant.

"The Heavenly Treasures Mountain sent an intelligence report. It has to do with young master Ji Ning," the female servant said.

Ninelotus waved her hand, and the intelligence report scroll immediately flew towards her. By her side, her mother said unhappily, "You said you are over it, but you continue to pay attention to his intelligence reports?"

"Does being over it mean that I can no longer pay attention to news regarding him?" Ninelotus gave her mother a glance, then unfurled the scroll to read it. A look of shock and amazement appeared on her face.

"Let me take a look. What's this all about? Was he killed by the Youngflame clan?" Her mother snatched it over to take a read. And as she did…she was so shocked that she jumped to her feet.

"Ki-ki-killed Immortal Floatcloud of the Youngflame clan?" She was astonished. "He's only trained for thirty years, right? How could, how, how could…"

"I told you. He is a genius." Ninelotus said softly, "Mother, go home. Let me be by myself for a while."

Her mother was truly stunned by this news as well. She simply couldn't comprehend it. How could this young fellow from a backwater tribe, who was even younger than her own daughter, have actually killed a supreme Loose Immortal?

Stunned, she left obediently. The maidservant left as well.

Ninelotus sat there by herself, silent.

"As long as you are doing well, I can be at ease. Ji Ning…stay alive." Ninelotus could only pray silently in her heart. When she had chosen the path of becoming the next leader of the Dongyan clan, she had decided to follow this path to its completion. As for Ji Ning? All she could do was silently pray for him in her heart.

This was because, after their parting at the Witchriver Immortal Estate…

"You shall be you, and I shall be me…"

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Chapter 33 – From Whence Came, To Where Go

It was a late, cold winter night. The temperature was bone-chillingly low.

But Princess Xiyue, of King Yan's Estate, was filled with burning rage. She angrily slammed her hand against the table. "The Youngflame clan is truly damnable. They actually dare to attempt an assassination within the imperial capital. Damnable, damnable, absolutely damnable!"

"Cousin, although the Youngflame clan sent a Loose Immortal Deathsworn, that person ended up dying in my hands," Ji Ning said. "Don't be so angry, cousin."

"How can I not be angry?" Princess Xiyue looked towards Ning. "I'm still covered in cold sweat. Fortunately, you are strong and were able to block both the Whitebone Immortal Slaying Needles as well as Immortal Floatcloud. If not…little brother, aside from Grandpa, you are my own family."

If her one and only little brother would have died…Princess Xiyue didn't even know what she would've done.

"The Youngflame clan is utterly damnable," Princess Xiyue said, so angry that she was shaking.

"Their strategy this time of sending out a Loose Immortal Deathsworn failed. I imagine that for now, they won't have any other tricks up their sleeves; so long as I stay within the imperial capital, the Youngflame clan shouldn't be able to do anything to me," Ning hurriedly consoled his cousin.

Princess Xiyue took a deep breath, then nodded. "Right. There is nothing else they can do to you. I imagine that a year later though, during the Conclave of Immortal Destiny, they will use the rules of the Conclave to act against you."

"Against others who are at the peak Wanxiang level…although I don't dare say that I am unequaled in the world, I should be able to keep myself alive." Ning's eyes suddenly lit up. "Cousin, my Primaltwin just finished binding the storage treasure which the deceased Immortal Floatcloud left behind."

"Oh?" Yuchi Xiyue's eyes lit up as well. "Let's see what sort of treasure Immortal Floatcloud left behind. However…since he dared to attempt to assassinate you, and also carried a Whitebone Immortal Slaying Needle and a Bloodcoil Heavenlock Formation with him, I imagine that he no longer had many other treasures on him."

"Let me take a close look." Ning nodded. He immediately began to have his Primaltwin, located within the underwater estate, to carefully investigate each treasure. Suddenly, Ning revealed a look of astonishment.

"What is it?" Yuchi Xiyue asked hurriedly.

"The other treasures are as I expected, but I found a scroll." Ning waved his hand, and a golden scroll suddenly appeared within it, emanating ripples of power that were ancient and strange.

"This scroll…?" Yuchi Xiyue looked at it, also curious. Ning unfurled the scroll. Atop the golden scroll, there was just a single, simple line of characters. They stated:

"From whence come, to where go. Xiamang Xun."

Every single stroke was simple and plain, but an aura of majesty exploded forth from them. Both Ning and Xiyue felt their hearts tremble; they felt as if they were facing the heavens themselves. Even Ning, when facing that ancient Fiendgod in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, hadn't felt such terror.

Whoosh. Ning hurriedly closed the scroll, and only then did the terrifying majesty completely disappear.

"What in the world is this?" Xiyue was absolutely amazed.

"I don't know either." Ning shook his head.

"Just a single line of characters; from whence come, to where go. And a single, simple signature inscription – Xiamang Xun. Who exactly is Xiamang Xun? Can it be that he is an ancient member of the imperial Xiamang clan?" Xiyue was completely puzzled. "Why haven't I ever heard of this name before?"

Ning said with a frown, "The person who wrote the line of words should be named Xiamang Xun…and judging from the majestic power from those words, he should be an incredibly powerful figure."

"I'll go ask Grandpa," Xiyue immediately said. "Wait a moment for me."

"Right now? So late at night?" Ning was amazed.

"It's fine. My grandfather is a Celestial Immortal; do you think there is a big difference between day and night for him? And he lives by himself; he doesn't even let maidservants move close to him. It's fine for me to find him late at night. And I'm in quite an uneasy mood as well; I feel as though this scroll is quite extraordinary. Wait a moment; I'll be back shortly." Xiyue hurriedly departed.

In just the amount of time needed to boil a kettle of tea.

Xiyue once more flew back gracefully, her face filled with excitement.

"Cousin, what'd he say?" Ning was quite curious as well as to exactly what this scroll is.

"Do you know who Xiamang Xun is?" Xiyue had a secretive look on her face.

"Who?" Ning asked. He had never heard of this name before.

"He is his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor of our Grand Xia Dynasty!" Xiyue whispered to him, "He's also the founder of the Grand Xia Dynasty, and the sovereign of this major world."

"His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor?" Ning was awestruck. The Grand Xia Emperor stood far above them. He was the sovereign of this entire major world, and his power filled the skies. In fact, it was said that the Grand Xia Emperor could even sit down and speak to the Celestial Emperor as equals. One was the Emperor of a major world of the mortal realms; the other was the Emperor of the Deva realms.

This was how things had been since the Fiendgod Era.

The Grand Xia Emperor had never been anyone else. He rarely showed himself; after all, this ancient dynasty which he had founded and which had existed for countless millions of years had long ago stabilized. It had its own laws, and most matters could be handled by his senior officials.

He was powerful. After all, he had single-handedly established an enormous dynasty and unified the world, after the end of the Fiendgod Era.

He was mysterious. Over the course of countless years, he had almost never shown himself.

He was exalted. No one in the Grand Xia Dynasty dared to go against his decrees.

As the sovereign of this major world, who had stood at its very peak from the Fiendgod Era until now, a figure who the vast majority of Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals couldn't even approach…very few people even knew his name.

"Right. His Imperial Majesty, the Emperor. This is his name." Xiyue was extremely excited. "Xiamang Xun…that's the name of his Imperial Majesty."

"Xiamang Xun, his Imperial Majesty…the Emperor…" Ning's heart was suddenly filled with fright and nervousness.

In his subconscious…he suddenly felt as though a pair of eyes was staring directly at him.

Previously, when he hadn't known this was the name of the Emperor, Ning hadn't felt anything. But now that he knew…he felt in his subconscious as though a pair of eyes had suddenly turned towards him.

"Do you know what this scroll is?" Xiyue didn't sense anything amiss at all. All she felt was excitement and energy. "A dharmic decree of reincarnation! This is a dharmic decree that was personally penned by the Grand Xia Emperor. If you possess this decree, once you perish, the dharmic decree will escort and accompany your soul into the Netherworld Kingdom. When the Yama-Kings of the Ten Halls see this dharmic decree, they will naturally give some face to our Grand Xia Emperor. The line of 'from whence come, to whence go' is an instruction; it means that the bearer is to reborn back into the major world and the clan from whence he last lived in."

Ning was enlightened.

The Yama-Kings of the Ten Halls. The Lord of Cui Palace. All of them had exalted statuses in the Netherworld Kingdom. For them, letting a few Immortals return to their own major world and clans was nothing more than a minor matter. It could also be viewed as helping to build up ties between themselves and the major power who wrote the dharmic decree.

"Right. My grandfather said that you are not to rashly tell others of the name of his Imperial Majesty," Xiyue said hurriedly. "According to what my grandfather said, if you say his Imperial Majesty's name aloud, his Imperial Majesty will sense it. However, since we are within King Yan's Estate, his Imperial Majesty won't mind too much."

"Understood. I won't tell others," Ning immediately said. In his heart, however, he felt shocked. So just now, when he felt in his subconscious as though a pair of eyes were paying attention to him…it had probably been his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor.

Time flowed on. News of Ning's Primaltwin's slaying of Immortal Floatcloud spread, and Ning's fame grew greater and greater. In the imperial capital, almost everyone believed that Ning had an exceedingly high level of insight into the Dao; far higher, at least, than Immortal Floatcloud possessed. Otherwise, how could he have so fought him, despite Immortal Floatcloud being at a higher tier of power?

Stillwater Commandery. Within a private training room in the Black-White College.

The Sloppy Daoist, the number one figure amongst the third generation disciples, was seated in the lotus position. He was only wearing pants, his upper body unclad. The skin on his upper body was actually covered with runes that looked like the shell of a tortoise, and series of ancient-feeling ripples of power poured out from him.

Whoosh.

Suddenly, within the private training room, the illusion of an incomparably enormous Turtle-Snake appeared. This Turtle-Snake filled nearly the entire training room, and the Sloppy Daoist stood on the illusory Turtle-Snake's back. The entire Turtle-Snake began to move, and both the turtle head and the serpent head emitted growling roars.

A layer of turtle shell began to appear on the Sloppy Daoist's entire body as he sat there, but his eyes were like the eyes of a snake, capable of filling the hearts of viewers with terror. His aura was incredibly ancient and powerful.

"Eh?" The Sloppy Daoist suddenly frowned. In his subconscious, he could feel something calling to him. It was…

"The Conclave of Immortal Destiny?" The Sloppy Daoist mumbled to himself, "What's going on? Why is it that when I'm training in the Black Tortoise 1 divine ability, my subconscious is foretelling that this upcoming Conclave is going to be quite important. It seems as though it is a major chance for me."

The powerful call was so strong that the Sloppy Daoist was almost unable to suppress it.

The Sloppy Daoist knew very well that this sort of subconscious feeling didn't need to be doubted; if he could sense that it was going to be a major stroke of luck for him, then he had to go.

"I don't like fighting and struggling with others. I just want to quietly relax and train. But…I didn't expect that in the end, I still have to go to this Conclave of Immortal Destiny." The Sloppy Daoist nodded lightly. "What shall be, shall be. Those things that are meant to be mine will be; for those things that aren't meant to be mine, there's no need to force it. I'll go give this Conclave a try and test out these geniuses of our major world."

"I've just reached the second Cycle of my Black Tortoise divine ability. I was planning to break through to the Primal level, but it now seems that I shouldn't be in a hurry. After this Conclave of Immortal Destiny is concluded, I'll make my breakthrough." The Sloppy Daoist no longer considered this matter, and began to train once more.

The enormous phantom of a Turtle-Snake once more filled the entire training room.

The Sloppy Daoist was like an ancient, primordial Fiendgod. He sat there quietly, meditating.

In the great Darknorth Sea, there was an Immortal island known as Goldcrow Island. The master of this island was referred to as Immortal Goldcrow; he was a truly mighty Void-level Earth Immortal. Although he had only reached the Void level a century ago, he had been famous for a long period of time. He had the lineage of the Golden Crow, and so although he was merely a Void-level Earth Immortal, he was close to Celestial Immortals in power.

In the Darknorth Sea, there were countless powers who wanted to befriend him, but Immortal Goldcrow was solitary and did as he pleased. As someone with the lineage of the Golden Crows, and as a man with a strange temper who was quite bloodthirsty, there were very few powers who dared to antagonize him.

Within Goldcrow Island.

A golden-robed Immortal Goldcrow was seated at the front of a grand palace, expounding on the Dao. Before him were six young men and women who were listening reverently. These were the six major disciples of Immortal Goldcrow.

During a pause in the expounding of the Dao, the eldest of the six disciples, a human, spoke out and asked, "Master, I heard that the Grand Xia Dynasty is about to hold the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Your disciple wishes to go; may I?"

"You, with your level of power, plan to go to the Conclave of Immortal Destiny? Do you want to die?" Immortal Goldcrow responded calmly, but as soon as his words came out, his face suddenly changed.

1. This term 'Xuanwu'literally translates as 'Black Warrior', but is also supposed to be, in Chinese mythology, either the name of the Black Tortoise/Turtle-Snake of the Four Beasts, or the Immortal whose pet is the Black Tortoise.

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Chapter 34 – A Gathering of Heroes

Immortal Goldcrow could sense a powerful beckoning coming from his subconscious, from deep in his soul.

"Why do I suddenly have such a powerful premonition?" Immortal Goldcrow was stunned; as an Immortal cultivator, he placed a great deal of faith in his subconscious premonitions. "It seems as though this Conclave of Immortal Destiny will be very important to me…as though it is calling for me to attend…"

"Master, your disciple isn't that bad. If I truly am unable to win it, then I will immediately give up and admit defeat." The senior disciple, unhappy, hurriedly added, "This Conclave of Immortal Destiny will see countless geniuses from this major world gather together. A chance like this will probably only come once in a lifetime."

Immortal Goldcrow, whose mind had been wandering, quickly returned to his senses. "Enough!" Immortal Goldcrow snapped with a frown, still seated at the front of the hall. "That little bit of talent you possess; you think that's 'not bad'? You have always stayed in a distant island and your experiences are very shallow. You've only heard of the Conclave; you have no idea how formidable the geniuses participating in the Conclave truly are. This is a report from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain regarding the previous Conclave; go ahead and read it." As he spoke, he produced a book in his hand, then tossed it out. His senior disciple hurriedly caught it.

"To enter the Conclave without having at least a bit of ability…you won't even have a chance to admit defeat." Immortal Goldcrow rose to his feet. Whoosh. He transformed into a rainbow, disappearing from their sight.

"Eldest apprentice-brother, you angered Master."

"Eldest apprentice-brother, let me take a look at this book as well. How formidable are the participants of the Conclave?" The other junior apprentice-brothers and junior apprentice-sisters all crowded around as well. As for Immortal Goldcrow, he had already arrived within his own Immortal estate.

This Immortal estate could not be carried away, but it had tremendous power.

No one else was inside the estate.

Immortal Goldcrow quickly entered a pavilion, within which sat a black-robed man. The black-robed man and Immortal Goldcrow appeared nearly identical; only, Immortal Goldcrow had a stronger and more bloodthirsty aura.

"It seems as though the reason I had that premonition is because my true body is still at the peak Wanxiang level." The black-robed man rose to his feet. "Although I have already had a stroke of great fortune, from my subconscious premonition…it seems as though this Conclave is going to be an extremely important one. I might be able to truly soar into the heavens at this Conclave."

"If I, Bu Yi, wish to become a Celestial Immortal, it seems that my chance will come through this Conclave of Immortal Destiny." The black-robed man continued to mutter to himself.

He had been the son of a fisherman. In his youth, he accompanied his father out to sea to catch fish, but because of a great storm, the waves had caused the ship to capsize. He had passed out, and by the time he had woken up, he had found out to his astonishment that he had entered an estate in the bottom of the sea.

This was an estate left behind by a powerful predecessor, and was filled with many cultivation techniques, arts, divine abilities, and even some supreme visualization techniques, along with magic treasures and curious items. There had even been an amount of liquefied elemental essence which had accumulated over the course of years within the estate, forming a giant pond with at least five million kilograms. Amongst the various precious treasures, he had also discovered a Golden Crow's egg. His youthful self had settled down in the estate, focusing on his training.

Most likely, he had been a cultivator in his past life as well; his soul was innately powerful to begin with, and with the aid of the supreme visualization techniques, when his true body had reached the Wanxiang level, he had split his soul, using the created half to possess the Golden Crow's egg. Afterwards, the egg had hatched, and the Golden Crow had been born.

This Golden Crow had an extremely pure lineage; only after training to the Void level had he been able to transform into human shape.

Over the course of many long years, Bu Yi had wandered the great Darknorth Sea, experiencing many life-and-death dangers. Thanks to the Golden Crow Primaltwin body he had acquired thanks to his great stroke of fortune as a youth, he had managed to overcome those dangerous situations and profit from them. After his Primaltwin had experienced the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, he had decided to break through to become a Void-level Earth Immortal. He had more than two hundred years before the next calamity descended; for Bu Yi, this was more than enough time.

"Although my Primaltwin's body is that of a Golden Crow and is extremely powerful…" the black-robed Bu Yi shook his head. "But the body is a possessed one. I'm a human, whereas Golden Crows are monsters. Although I possessed the egg…I was at most able to complete a 70% or 80% fusion with it. Training to the Void level is most likely my limit. To overcome the tribulation and become a Celestial Immortal? There's no hope at all!"

Possessing a Golden Crow's egg was a stroke of tremendous fortune. When he had been very weak and young, he hadn't hesitated at all to make this choice.

However, a Primaltwin acquired through possession wouldn't be sufficiently well fused together, and becoming a Celestial Immortal was difficult to begin with. Even creatures such as a Golden Crow Godbird with exceedingly pure Golden Crow lineages would find it hard to overcome the Celestial Tribulation. He, whose soul and body had only fused 70% or 80%, had almost no chance of overcoming it at all. He knew this quite well.

"I can sense that this Conclave of Immortal Destiny is a chance for me."

"I, Bu Yi, have roamed and dominated the Darknorth Seas. It has always been my Primaltwin, 'Immortal Goldcrow', who was famous. This time…my true body shall reveal its own brilliance as well at this Conclave of Immortal Destiny." The black-robed Bu Yi felt tremendous eagerness.

Three days later.

Immortal Goldcrow gave instructions to his disciples to train hard, stating that he was going out for some wandering…and then quietly left, heading towards the imperial capital.

A small ship was flying through the misty clouds, atop which was a black-robed man seated in the lotus position, a sharp, saber-hacking aura emanating from him.

"Eh?" The black-robed man suddenly opened his eyes. Previously, his eyes had been closed as he was meditating, but the Conclave of Immortal Destiny had suddenly come to his mind, and as it did, his subconscious began to whisper to him.

"After bidding Master farewell, I began to rove through the various major worlds to adventure and train. This world of the Grand Xia Dynasty is already my ninth major world. I completely have no interest in this so-called 'Conclave of Immortal Destiny'; after all, I apprenticed myself to Master long ago. But why is it that I suddenly have a feeling…as though I should go participate? It seems as though if I don't go, I'll miss something or will lose something." The black-robed man was mystified.

However, he didn't doubt the premonitions of his subconscious.

"If that's the case…then I might as well make a trip to the imperial capital of the Grand Xia and participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. I want to see how formidable the geniuses of this major world are." The black-robed man willed it, and the air around the small ship began to shimmer. It then disappeared completely; he had used a void teleportation technique to head directly towards the imperial capital.

An ordinary tavern within a commandery city of the Grand Xia. A dirty-looking maiden was completely drunk, and there was even some straw in her hair. She continued to call out loudly, "More wine, quick, more wine!"

"Miss, you've used up all your money already," the tavern waiter hurriedly said.

The dirty-looking maiden opened her eyes. "Used up?"

"Listen up, all of you. I'll let you guys hit or kick me as you please; I definitely won't fight back at all. Buuut, you have to help me pay some money for wine. You don't need to pay too much; just a gourd's worth of wine is enough. Just let me fill up my gourd," the dirty-looking maiden called out.

"Beat you as I please?" Instantly, a newcomer was intrigued.

"Heh, yet another poor bastard is going to fall for it."

"That gourd just won't fill up no matter how you try."

Some of the regulars were secretly muttering to each other. The guest who had wanted to give her a kick for fun felt that something was off and immediately stopped himself.

The dirty maiden, holding that gourd of wine, looked around herself. No one had come to hit her.

"I'll let you hit or kick me as you please. I definitely won't fight back," the dirty maiden called out.

"…ugh. It seems I need to switch places again. I can't swindle too much in a little place like this anyhow. Why don't I go to a larger place…say, the imperial capital, the largest city of them all?"

The maiden was suddenly stunned.

Her blurry, drunken eyes suddenly grew clear.

"The Conclave of Immortal Destiny?"

She could feel a powerful call from it.

Originally, in accordance with the way she trained her Dao, she shouldn't have participated in the Conclave at all. But her subconscious premonition couldn't be wrong.

"As soon as I had the idea to go to the imperial capital, I immediately felt a strong premonition regarding the Conclave of Immortal Destiny…it seems as though I truly will have to go attend. Perhaps this Conclave of Immortal Destiny will be of help to me in overcoming the tribulation and becoming a Celestial Immortal. I've reincarnated nine times now…if I fail again, then I truly will have no more hope for the future."

Whoosh. The drunken woman suddenly disappeared from within the tavern. As for the ordinary mortals within the tavern, they didn't notice anything at all. It was as though this maiden had never appeared in their midst before at all.

The truly formidable figures who had secluded themselves throughout the vast Grand Xia Empire, including some truly peerless monsters who had originally disdained from attending the Conclave, all felt a call from their subconscious. All of them changed their minds, hastening towards the imperial capital.

The imperial capital. King Yan's Estate. Ji Ning's Immortal estate. There was a lake in front of it, and atop the lake, there was a small ship. Ning was lying down in the middle of the ship, allowing it to drift where it pleased.

Perhaps because he had grown into a habit of drifting on a boat at Serpentwing Lake, when Ning lay down in a boat and let it drift where it please, his soul felt exceptionally calm and empty. It was even often of benefit to him in pondering secret arts.

"Young master Ji Ning." A maidservant, standing at the side of the lake, called out.

A handsome, slender fur-clad youth suddenly stood up from within the distant wooden boat. With a single step, he disappeared from the boat and reappeared on the shore.

"Young master Ji Ning," the maidservant said respectfully, "A group of people are at the royal estate and wish to meet you."

"Meet me? Who are they?" Ning asked.

"They say…that they are your fellow disciples from your school, or something like that," the maidservant said.

Ning's eyes lit up. He immediately transformed into a gust of wind, howling through the air as he disappeared.

King Yan's Estate's front gate. A gust of wind blew past, and Ning appeared at the entrance.

"Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning!" A white-robed youth ran over excitedly.

"Junior apprentice-brother Northson." Ning, upon seeing his junior apprentice-brother, felt extraordinarily happy as well. The two of them clutched each other in a bear hug before letting go.

Ning had long ago begun to view Northson as he would a true little brother.

"Senior apprentice-brother, you truly are amazing. You actually produced a Primaltwin and even killed Immortal Floatcloud." Northson was extraordinarily excited. "When I was in the Black-White College, I heard the news and was absolutely tickled. Hahaha, you killed Youngflame Nong and that Fiendgod, and then you caused even a Deathsworn sent out by the Youngflame clan to perish. Hehehe, I wonder how infuriated the Youngflame clan is right now?!"

"Hopefully, they'll die from their anger," Ning said. And then he looked at the other three in front of him. "Senior apprentice-brother Vastriver, senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei, and eldest apprentice-brother…why have you all come?"

The figures in front of him were the Sloppy Daoist, Yu Wei, Vastriver, and Northson.

Yu Wei laughed, "Both myself and our eldest apprentice-brother are participating in this Conclave. Senior apprentice-brother Vastriver and junior apprentice-brother Northson are here to watch. I imagine that once the Conclave truly begins, quite a few other disciples of the Black-White College will come to watch as well. After all, actual participants are quite few in number, but quite a few spectators will be present."

"Eldest apprentice-brother, you are attending as well?" Ning was surprised. When he had chatted with Yu Wei and the others about the Conclave, it seemed as though the only member of the Black-White College to attend would be Yu Wei. The others wouldn't participate, and the leader of the third generation disciples, the Sloppy Daoist, wasn't planning to attend either.

"What should happen, will happen," the Sloppy Daoist said with a laugh.

"This time, our Black-White College will have a total of three participants in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, and eldest apprentice-brother. Our Black-White College is definitely going to be famous!" Northson was filled with anticipation.

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Chapter 35 – The End Days for Snowdragon Mountain

Yuchi Xiyue was also aware that Ji Ning's fellow disciples had arrived, and she arranged a special banquet for them, inviting the disciples of the Black-White College to attend.

On this very day. In the distant Stillwater Commandery. A giant warship, covered with flowery golden tattoos, was howling through the air, sending out waves of energy in its wake. Aboard the warship there was a large, tightly clustered group of Golden Imperials. Upon the deck, there were also nine black-armored Captains of the Imperial Guard, each of whom emanated unfathomably mighty auras.

"Snowdragon Mountain is up ahead," a black-uniformed man said with a laugh.

"Sorry to trouble you, fellow Daoist Skyfall," one of the nine Golden Imperial captains said.

"This is a small matter. It is the good fortune of myself, Northmont Skyfall, to be able to assist King Yan in handling this matter." Skyfall spoke in a flattering manner, but in his heart, he sighed to himself. "Oh, Snowdragon Mountain…how could you be so foolish as to offend King Yan? Even though in the past King Yan was in dire straits, he still wasn't someone which your puny little Snowdragon Mountain sect could afford to offend. This time, King Yan has sent nine full squads of Golden Imperials over. It seems as though he truly harbors hatred for Snowdragon Mountain. I wonder what exactly Snowdragon Mountain did to him in the past."

Yuchi Snow, Yuchi Mount; their deaths were caused principally by Dong Seven!

Ning and Xiyue naturally hated the man deeply. King Yan knew how his granddaughter felt, and so immediately ordered nine squads of Golden Imperials to head towards Stillwater Commandery. He instructed them to first notify Stillwater Commandery's Northmont clan of the following: "In the past, when our royal excellency was wandering the world, a feud arose between himself and Snowdragon Mountain. Today, we have come to annihilate Snowdragon Mountain; we'd like to ask the Northmont clan to permit this."

The Northmont clan's response: Annihilate Snowdragon Mountain? A little clan which didn't even have a single Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal? The Northmont clan naturally wouldn't care about this matter. In addition, given how diplomatic King Yan was by first sending people to notify them, the Northmont clan immediately arranged for Northmont Skyfall to personally lead the way, bringing these Golden Imperials directly towards Snowdragon Mountain.

"Here we are." Skyfall pointed towards the area below them. Past the clouds, one could vaguely make out a long, winding mountain range, amongst which were three particularly imposing and tall mountain peaks that vastly surpassed the other three mountains.

"Snowdragon Mountain?" The nine Imperial Guard captains looked down at the base, all nodding slightly.

"First capture Dong Seven, then annihilate Snowdragon Mountain," one of the captains said.

BOOM!

The warship immediately flew downwards, carrying boundless might and power as it soared directly towards the area above Snowdragon Mountain's headquarters. This instantly caused a huge shock within Snowdragon Mountain; who would actually dare to have their warship halt directly above the school? This was too arrogant.

"I wonder which fellow Daoist has arrived at Snowdragon Mountain?" Boom! Boom! Boom! Three figures soared into the skies; they were the three Primal Daoists of Snowdragon Mountain. Daoist Snowplume, Daoist Coldsun, and Daoist Blackdragon.

Upon flying upwards, their gazes were immediately drawn to the eye-catching, golden-armored soldiers. The terrifying majesty and aura of power emanating from the soldiers caused their hearts to quail.

However, upon seeing the black-uniformed Northmont Skyfall, Daoist Blackdragon hurriedly said, "Senior Skyfall, why have you come to our Snowdragon Mountain? If there's anything you need, just summon us; we will simply go to you. There's no need for you to personally make a trip."

"Senior Skyfall, might I ask why you have come to Snowdragon Mountain? If there is anything you need, just tell us; we will definitely strive to accomplish it," Daoist Coldsun said hurriedly as well.

All three Primal Daoists were extremely courteous.

"Gentlemen?" Skyfall just looked at the nine Imperial Guard captains; all nine of them were Loose Immortals.

"Found him." The eyes of one of the captains lit up.

Whoosh!

He took a single step, then disappeared from his original location, reappearing inside the Snowdragon Mountain headquarters. In the blink of an eye, he suddenly flew back with a white-robed youth in tow. The white-robed youth's face was ashen. His entire body was shaking in abject terror.

"Dong Seven!" Daoist Coldsun called out in shock.

"Grandpa, Grandpa!" The white-robed youth was utterly terrified. He hurriedly called out, "My Zifu has been destroyed, my Zifu has been destroyed!"

Daoist Coldsun's face instantly changed. A hint of rage was now visible, but he forced it down and said angrily, "Senior Skyfall, what's this all about? Why have you led people here to apprehend disciples of Snowdragon Mountain? If Snowdragon Mountain has offended you in some way, just tell us; those who deserve to be punished will be. Snowdragon Mountain will definitely give you a satisfactory response."

"These aren't my men." Northmont Skyfall shook his head. "You really have no vision, have you? You aren't even able to recognize the most formidable soldiers of the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, the Golden Imperials!"

"Golden Imperials?" Daoists Coldsun, Blackdragon, and Snowplume were all shocked. Imperial Guards? Even in Stillwater Commandery, Snowdragon Mountain was a fairly ordinary sect, located in a fairly distant location, without even a single Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal to their name. Naturally, they knew very little about the distant imperial capital. Although Daoist Blackdragon would occasionally make a visit to the imperial capital, he had never even seen an Imperial Guard, much less the elite 'Golden Imperials' of the Guard. When they saw the golden armor worn by the soldiers, they had taken them to be soldiers of the Northmont clan of Stillwater!

"Generals," Daoist Blackdragon said hurriedly, "If Snowdragon Mountain has acted offensively in some manner, please tell us."

Daoist Coldsun and Daoist Snowplume were terrified and restless as well.

"We have come on orders to apprehend Dong Seven and wipe out Snowdragon Mountain," one of the captains said coldly.

"Apprehend Dong Seven? Wipe out Snowdragon Mountain?"

Daoist Blackdragon and the other two felt as though thunderbolts had suddenly come crashing down out of the clear sky. Both were stupefied.

Wipe out their school?

Good, good heavens!

Their school was one which had existed for a very long time. Everything had been perfectly fine; why had the Golden Imperials suddenly come to wipe them out?

"Coldsun!" Daoist Blackdragon, upon seeing the captured Dong Seven, instantly understood what this was about. He stared at the nearby Daoist Coldsun, then roared furiously, "It is all your fault. You coddled Dong Seven! Dong Seven has harmed countless people in the outside world; even in our own school, he's harmed quite a few of our female disciples. But you've always protected him! Dong Seven must have offended a powerful figure at some point, causing our Snowdragon Mountain to now face complete annihilation."

Daoist Coldsun's face was completely ashen now as well.

Daoist Snowplume begged, "Everyone, you can punish Dong Seven as you please. You can even have Snowdragon Mountain do whatever you wish us to do. Just, please give us a way out."

"Everyone." The captain who had apprehended Dong Seven spoke out emotionlessly. "Let's do it."

With this order given, the squads of Golden Imperials immediately began to fly out of the warship.

"FORMATION! PROTECT THE MOUNTAIN!" Daoist Blackdragon let out an earsplitting bellow, and his voice rang out in the ears of every single disciple.

"SEALS!"

"SNOWDRAGON SKYSOAR FORMATION!"

Every single formation and restrictive spell which the previous generations experts of Snowdragon Mountain had every created were instantly activated. One seal after another instantly appeared, hovering in the air. Clouds and mist appeared. One snowy white dragon after another began to appear as well, flying and weaving amidst the skies above the mountains. When a school unleashed all of its stored powers at once, even a Loose Immortal would find it difficult to break through the school.

Rumble….

One divine golden dragon after another began to appear in the skies. There were a total of eight divine golden dragons, each of which was coiled and nearly ten thousand kilometers long, and emanated a majestic presence.

It was true that ordinary Loose Immortals would find it difficult to break through Snowdragon Mountain's headquarters…but a squad of Golden Imperials consisted of a Loose Immortal commanding forty nine Primal Daoists, all of whom were dressed in Dao-armor, and who joined together to form into a divine dragon! Their might was at the very least comparable to ten ordinary Loose Immortals!

And here…there were nine squads!

Rumble…

The golden dragons coiled and writhed in the sky. A simple thwack from one of the tails caused all of the seals to explode and crack, bursting as if they were soap bubbles.

The captain who had captured Dong Seven just watched from above. As for the other eight squads, they had all transformed into golden dragons and were launching attacks at the below Snowdragon Mountain. With absolute superiority in raw power…they smashed through every single grand sealing formation. As for the so-called bewildering formations? Every single divine dragon was ten thousand kilometers in length; a single trembling movement from them caused entire formations to break apart.

"This, this…" Daoist Coldsun had led his own disciples to form into an enormous Snowdragon. But, upon seeing the might and power of the divine golden dragons, he was so terrified he didn't even dare to go block.

He was a Primal Daoist, leading a group of Wanxiang Adepts and Zifu Disciples in forming a Snowdragon…and he was supposed to fight against a divine dragon formed by a Loose Immortal leading forty nine Primal Daoists? They were on completely separate levels. The difference in power was just too great.

"Oh, Dong Seven…who the hell did you offend…" Daoist Coldsun felt both fury and despair.

"It's finished." Daoist Snowplume led his disciples to block, but at the very first exchange, more than half of his disciples perished and the Snowdragon was completely shattered. A look of despair appeared on Daoist Snowplume's face. "Snowdragon Mountain is finished. Damn us…damn us for not being strict in carrying out the laws of the sect. Our disciples have caused harm everywhere, and in the end…they finally offended a powerful figure."

BOOM.

Daoist Snowplume instantly blew apart, causing an enormous storm of elemental ki. He had chosen self-detonation; this way, at least his soul would be able to reincarnate.

Daoist Snowplume self-detonated. Daoist Coldsun was killed. Daoist Blackdragon was killed.

Every single mountain peak that belonged to Snowdragon Mountain was overturned. Under the majestic power of these eight divine dragons that were ten thousand kilometers in length, some parts were crushed down to form a lakebed, while other parts were flattened into plains. In short…not a single true mountain could now be seen.

"This…this…" Dong Seven was completely stunned.

"Fellow Daoist Skyfall, sorry for the trouble. We'll head straight back to the imperial capital now."

"This was a small matter. Snowdragon Mountain offended King Yan; they invited annihilation upon themselves. They cannot blame anyone but themselves."

"Then we'll leave now."

"Please do. I won't send you off."

The group of Golden Imperials immediately led Dong Seven aboard their warship, then departed. As for Northmont Skyfall, he stared at the former Snowdragon Mountains, which had now been smashed into lakes and plains. He couldn't help but shake his head. "A small sect like this…they weren't strict in their rules, and their disciples harmed many. The karmic luck of the school would naturally continue to drop, until finally, one day, annihilation arrived. How utterly laughable…even the imperial clan of the Grand Xia erected the Raindragon Guard and sent them out to apprehend and execute sinners for the sake of improving their luck, but a small sect like this actually acted with such wild abandon."

Whoosh. Northmont Skyfall disappeared into thin air, teleporting away.

The imperial capital of the Grand Xia. King Yan's Estate.

The snow was drifting downwards right now as a group of Golden Imperials entered King Yan's Estate.

"Brothers, go get some rest, but keep an eye on that Dong Seven. I'm going to go report to the Princess right now," a captain said, then immediately went to go see her.

Within a wide, spacious hall. A banquet had been prepared here. Ning and Xiyue were currently accompanying Northson and the others, watching the snow while eating and chatting together.

"Reporting to the Princess," the captain said respectfully as he appeared, "We've caught him."

Ning and Xiyue both looked at the captain, and as they did, both were breathless. Upon hearing the words, "We've caught him", both of them couldn't help but rise to their feet.

"Everyone, Ji Ning and I have something to attend to. We'll return shortly," Yuchi Xiyue said immediately.

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Chapter 36 – The Grand Xia Emperor

A dark, gloomy room. There were many instruments of punishment located in this room. In the center, there was a punishment rack, atop which was bound a terrified, pathetic-looking white-robed youth.

"This, this…" Dong Seven stared at the punishment instruments, face utterly ashen.

"Who is it? Who exactly did I offend?" Dong Seven was absolutely horrified. "They actually annihilated Snowdragon Mountain." His previous arrogant demeanor had completely vanished, leaving behind nothing but terror.

The soldiers in the corner of the room just watched quietly. Suddenly…

Rumble…the stone door swung open, and a woman walked in alongside a fur-clad youth. This caused Dong Seven to feel even more uneasy. He didn't recognize these two at all.

"Princess." The soldier on guard called out with respect.

"You can leave," Yuchi Xiyue instructed.

"Yes." The soldier immediately departed, and the stone door once more swung shut.

Yuchi Xiyue and Ji Ning both stared at the terrified, pathetic man bound atop the rack. These two cousins had long ago repeatedly reviewed the intelligence reports regarding Dong Seven. His appearance had been deeply engraved in both their hearts.

"Dong Seven!" Ning's eyes flashed with coldness.

"It was you. It was you. It was you who destroyed my family, who killed my father and caused my mother to die of depression as well." Xiyue's eyes instantly turned red. She picked up a large ladle, filled with a bubbling, hot silver liquid, then flicked it towards Dong Seven.

Crackle…

The blazing silver liquid splattered on Dong Seven's body. Dong Seven instantly emitted a miserable wail, and his neck stretched out as his agonized cries rang out. His face was as white as paper.

After he somewhat came back to his senses, he pitifully cried out, "Mercy, mercy!"

Ning's eyes were red as well. Everything…everything had been a result of this wayward, hedonistic wastrel. This detestable person, this vile little creature who he, Ji Ning, now only looked down upon! But this detestable little creature had caused Ning's parents as well as his cousin's parents to all die early on. A feud of familicide…he could not live under the same skies with this man!

"It hurts, it hurts! Mercy!" Dong Qi screamed miserably.

"Hurts?" Ning picked up a blazing branding iron-type magic treasure and walked over. "That was just the start. Dong Seven, don't be in such a rush. Slowly enjoy this."

"No, no, no no no—!" Dong Seven felt his own heart quiver. He began to scream miserably once more…but protective formations covered this punishment room, and no one outside could hear him at all.

Ning heated up this branding iron-type magic treasure, filling it with his elemental ki. Instantly, a crackling sound could be heard as he pressed it down against the tattered body of Dong Seven. Smoke and steam arose. After he moved the branding iron away, he saw that Dong Seven's skin now had the diagram of a flame branded into it, a brand which quietly activated the power of the natural world.

"AHHH!! It hurts, it hurts!" Dong Seven's entire body was quivering. That brand diagram seemed to be causing his entire body to burn, and this sensation of being burned to death repeatedly nearly caused him to mentally collapse.

The nearby Xiyue said coldly, "Don't worry. These are all instruments of punishment used by the imperial clan of the Grand Xia. You've only tasted two types so far. I won't let you die that easily. I've prepared many fine spirit-pills. I'll heal you repeatedly and let you taste the more than ten thousand types of corporal punishment the Grand Xia Dynasty has to offer. I'll let you learn what pain is, what regret is!"

Dong Seven, upon hearing this, nearly broke down. Ten thousand types of punishment? The first two had already nearly driven him to insanity.

"How the hell did I offend you two? What the hell did I do? You must have the wrong person!" Dong Seven was almost crying now.

Rumble…the stone door was once more pushed open. From outside padded in a large, snowy white hound. The stone door then shut once more.

"Do you still recognize me?" Savagery was in the eyes of the Whitewater Hound as he stared at Dong Seven.

"Whitewater Hound?" Dong Seven was stunned. Deep in his memories, a scene from decades ago began to replay. A scene with a tall, muscular man and a loving couple; the wife was pregnant and truly beautiful, with a rare and noble aura. Her pregnancy just added a strange mystique to her charm…and Dong Seven had been incredibly aroused.

And so, he had ordered Yu Dong and Shui Yi to make their moves.

"You remember now?" Ning said coldly. "That couple back then…they were my mother and father."

"The one that was killed by your group back then was my father." Xiyue began to grow even more crazed. Her father had absolutely doted on her when she was a child. His wide, mountain-like shoulders…his loud laughter…his repeated appearances in her dreams…

He was her most beloved father…and she had been her kind and gentle man…

Ning and Xiyue both stared at Dong Seven.

Dong Seven felt coldness in the bottom of his heart.

"It was you who killed Shui Yi and Yu Dong?" Dong Seven said quaveringly.

"Right." Ning nodded. "And now, it is time for you. The principal instigator."

"My cousin was far too gentle; he simply used the Heartburner Art to torment those two." Xiyue was gnashing her teeth. "Those two died, so that's that…but as for you, the main culprit? I'm going to let you taste all of the ten thousand-plus punishments the Grand Xia has to offer. When the time comes for you to die, I will absorb your soul into the Furnace of Despair. I am going to torture your soul, every day and every night, for thousands of years…"

Dong Seven's gaze grew numb as he listened.

Ning looked at his nearby cousin. Although he felt tremendous hatred as well, and also wanted to torture and shatter this man's soul…compared to his cousin, he was far off.

"Cousin, it's enough for you to torment his soul for ten days and ten nights," Ning sent mentally, his eyes red. "There's no need for you to steep your soul in hatred for thousands of years for the sake of this piece of trash."

Torturing Dong Seven for thousands of years would also mean that Yuchi Xiyue would be steeped in hatred for thousands of years. Torturing others was a form of tormenting one's self as well.

"The seeds of my hatred are deep. Little brother, don't worry about me." Xiyue's gaze had become twisted from madness.

As Ning had grown up, he had been taught by his parents for more than ten years, then taught by Immortal Diancai as well. He also had his good friend, Mu Northson; thus, Ning's inner heart had never become twisted.

As for Xiyue, however…after her parents had died, she had lived by herself and suffered tremendously. She didn't wish to think back to her days of suffering, but even after being brought back by her maternal grandfather to the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, she remained quite solitary. Only in front of her cousin would her heart feel slightly warm.

Dong Seven died an agonizing death.

After having been tortured for three months and perishing, his soul was indeed drawn into the 'Furnace of Despair' and tormented for more than another month. In the end…it had been King Yan who intervened. Although Princess Xiyue kept the Furnace of Despair on her own person at all times, and although there was no way an ordinary person could kill a soul that was located with a magic treasure…King Yan could. He destroyed Dong Seven's soul.

"Ji Ning, spend more time with Xiyue. She's given vent to her hatred for nearly half a year now; she should be about done. If she continues like this, then she will completely lose herself to madness. Spend more time with her; this will help her slowly begin to walk out from the grips of hate." King Yan personally chatted with Ning on this, and Ning naturally memorized these words.

Deep autumn.

In the deepest reaches of the skies above the imperial capital, there was a hazy gray void. Whoosh…the dim gray void suddenly parted, revealing an enormous corridor which was filled with a hazy golden light. A large number of black soldiers flew out in columns, and behind them there was a group of black-armored warriors that were riding on celestial horses. Behind the riders, there was an enormous coiling black dragon whose incomparably powerful aura filled the skies. It was pulling an enormous Immortal carriage that emanated golden light. There were golden lamps hanging from the Immortal carriage, and seated atop it was a black-robed man.

This black-robed man had a plain, unassuming face. His eyes, however, seemed to hold thunder within them. Wherever his gaze passed, the world itself seemed about ready to split apart.

His might and prestige caused the surrounding soldiers to feel absolute submission in their trembling hearts.

Behind this Immortal carriage, there was a group of black-armored soldiers who were seated obediently within a warship. This warship was three hundred meters long, but it was much smaller than the Immortal carriage. It must be understood that the black dragon was more than thirty kilometers long…and the Immortal carriage was roughly the same size as the black dragon.

Whoosh.

The Emperor was out and about, with 999 guards escorting him.

This squad flew downwards, flying directly towards the Skylight Palace. Amidst the clouds at the highest point of the Skylight Palace, a large group of Immortal maidens and soldiers were already waiting. They all fell to their knees. Each of them were at least at the Primal Daoist level…but for them to be able to serve the Grand Xia Emperor was their fortune.

"We bow to you, your Imperial Majesty." A muscular, two-headed Fiendgod was the first to immediately kneel down and call out the words.

Instantly, the other Immortal maidens and soldiers all knelt down as well. "We bow to you, your Imperial Majesty."

The black dragon pulled the Immortal carriage downwards. The many black-armored soldiers that were escorting the carriage all quickly separated, moving to stand in different positions.

"Mm." The black-robed man left the Immortal carriage. With but two steps, he arrived at the nearby imperial throne, then sat down. He looked downwards at them from his position on high, then instructed, "Send an order out to have King Qi come."

"Yes." The twin-headed Fiendgod immediately obeyed the order.

The black-robed man continued to sit there on the throne. He swept his gaze forward, seeming to stare through the layers of clouds and be able to inspect everything within the imperial capital.

He sat there on high. This was the Emperor of this major world…the one who had truly, absolutely unified it!

However, he had set his sights on the Three Realms long ago. He rarely came back to spend time in this major world of the Grand Xia.

"A few decades ago, the Netherworld Kingdom of the Three Realms suffered an attack. The Six Paths of Reincarnation were collapsed and destroyed…and then the attackers suddenly vanished without a trace." The black-robed Emperor mused softly to himself, "The Netherworld…that is where the souls of the Three Realms reside. How important it is! The defenses there are very tight. The Yama-Kings of the Ten Halls and the Lord of Cui Palace are all Pure Yang True Immortals, and each of them are formidable."

"Kshitigarbha 1, of the Buddhist schools, stands guard there as well. The Netherworld has some other ancient fellows there as well…it is a place of tremendous power, but upon suffering a sneak attack, it wasn't able to fight back at all. In a very short period of time, the Six Paths of Reincarnation were destroyed…and they haven't even been able to find out who caused it or where the attackers came from. Even someone like Master was unable to find out."

"These forces which lie in the shadows…they are terrifying powerful. And their very first attack was against the Six Paths of Reincarnation."

"It seems…the Three Realms are about to fall into a state of chaos." The black-robed Emperor had a look of deep worry within his eyes.

When a tribulation came for the Three Realms as a whole, it would be incredibly terrifying. In the unfathomably ancient past, after Pangu established the world, the first era had been the Primordial era. Afterwards, the Primordial World had been shattered; only then had the three thousand major worlds and the trillions of smaller worlds been created. From this, one could tell how terrifying that storm had been.

"Every single major cataclysm will give birth to some truly supreme heroic figures." The black-robed Emperor stared downwards towards the imperial capital of the Grand Xia. As the saying went, heroes were born in the midst of chaos. All of the powerful figures of the Three Realms had been born over the course of the truly major tribulations of the past.

"This will be the first Conclave of Immortal Destiny after the destruction of the Six Paths of Reincarnation. Then…most likely, some of those heroic figures that are going to emerge in this era will first appear in this Conclave of Immortal Destiny," the black-robed Emperor mused to himself…

1. This is the bodhisattva who swore that he would only become a Buddha after emptying out all the hells of their sinners through enlightening mankind.

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Chapter 1 – The Emperor's Decree

"My imperial Xiamang clan is the successor to and has the bloodline of the imperial 'Xia clan' of the Primordial World of Pangu. We long ago unified this major world and have cultivated it for countless years. I then apprenticed myself to Master, who once said…in terms of strength of karmic luck, the major world of the Grand Xia Dynasty ranks as number one amongst the tens of major worlds under his control. With so much karmic luck present here, the upcoming tremors that are going to give birth to some peerless heroes will very likely give birth to them right here, in the world of the Grand Xia!" The black-robed Emperor was pondering this matter.

"Master is someone who mastered a Heavenly Dao. Even in the Three Realms, he is one of the most absolutely supreme of major powers…but even he is worried about the major storm that is going to sweep the Three Realms…if I am careless, the imperial clan of the Grand Xia might be wiped out."

He knew very well that his master was one of the truly supreme powers of the Three Realms, with tens of major worlds that completely obeyed his orders. The Grand Xia's world was just one of them.

As for the Celestial Emperor?

The Celestial Emperor was nothing more than a person who was in charge of administrating and managing some of the rules of the Three Realms. In terms of power and authority, the Celestial Emperor wasn't that much higher than the Grand Xia Emperor, much less his master. Only individuals on the level of his master were hegemons who truly governed the destiny of the Three Realms. In the past, when there had been some disturbances in the Three Realms, quite a few Celestial Emperors had been appointed. Who would be the Celestial Emperor? This was something that would be decided by the supreme experts on his master's level.

"If even someone like Master is worried, then his disciples, such as myself, have a very high chance of falling. I must be absolutely cautious, as careful as I can."

The black-robed Emperor had lived from the era of the Primordial World until this era; in the past, he had led his tribe from the Primordial World and relocated to this world, later known as the world of the 'Grand Xia Dynasty'. He had battled against the local Fiendgods and the other tribes before finally unifying the world. He wasn't an easy person to deal with!

He knew exactly what needed to do in order to survive a major cataclysm.

"I need to befriend even more experts of the Three Realms. It would be ideal if some of them were willing to put themselves under my command. My luck would improve significantly if they did."

"During this Conclave of Immortal Destiny, I imagine that future experts of the Three Realms will be born."

The black-robed Emperor's eyes were hooded.

Suddenly…from afar, a figure appeared atop the clouds. This man was dressed in long yellow robes that were embroidered with the image of a Raindragon. His face was round, with soft lines, but his eyes were like the stars themselves. He…was King Qi! A Celestial Immortal!

"I bow before you, your Imperial Majesty," King Qi said, bowing respectfully.

"King Qi, have any major matters occurred during this period of time when I was gone?" The black-robed Emperor asked. Normally, it was the Emperor's clansmen and senior officials who managed the major affairs of the empire; only the truly major matters would be reported to the Emperor.

"Your Imperial Majesty, you already know that King Yan has become a Celestial Immortal. As for other matters…nothing major has occurred. Everything in the Grand Xia Dynasty is rather peaceful," King Qi said respectfully. The death of Youngflame Nong? Forget about the next Godplume Duke; even if the current Godplume Duke died, it would be a petty, minor matter that was not worth mentioning to the Emperor.

But of course, if a Celestial Immortal like Patriarch Arcanum perished, it would be worth reporting.

"Mm." The black-robed Emperor nodded. "There are a few months left before the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Have you heard any unusual news regarding this Conclave?"

"The Conclave?" King Qi was startled.

The Conclave of Immortal Destiny was carried out every three centuries. For short-lived Immortal cultivators, this was something that happened only once in a lifetime, but for someone as exalted as the Grand Xia Emperor…the Emperor had lived for so incomparably long that for him, the tricentennial Conclave was quite a ordinary, regular event. He might spend ten thousand years in a single closed-door meditation session; he normally wouldn't pay any attention to the Conclave. It would be his subordinates, the Celestial Immortals, who would spend a bit of time on it.

For Celestial Immortals to officiate over it was already putting it on a very high pedestal.

"If I must point out something unusual regarding this Conclave of Immortal Destiny…" King Qi pondered for a moment as he thought about an intelligence report that had been delivered to him by the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, then said, "I suppose there is something. In past Conclaves, some of the truly proud and peerless geniuses would disdain from attending…but all of the extremely famous peerless geniuses are attending this time. In terms of quality, the competitors in this Conclave should be exceptionally high."

Peerless geniuses wouldn't necessarily take part in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. Because of their own personality, characters, and training techniques, quite a few would not attend. For example, the Sloppy Daoist had originally not been planning to attend at all.

"Oh?" The black-robed Emperor nodded lightly. Indeed; the signs were all there. Luck, the invisible intrinsic, was beginning to gather.

This Conclave of Immortal Destiny was going to be one of the places where karmic luck would gather. Those peerless geniuses would innately be drawn to attend, because the most outstanding of them would gain the blessing of even more luck, allowing their future potential to be limitless.

"I shall personally host this Conclave of Immortal Destiny," the black-robed Emperor said.

"Persona–" King Qi said, astonished, "The Conclave happens every three centuries; it isn't that important. Your Imperial Majesty, you are going to personally host it?

The black-robed Emperor nodded. "Yes. I shall personally host it, and I am going to increase the rewards for this Conclave a hundredfold as well."

"A hundredfold?" King Qi's heart shook. In the past, only the top three competitors of the Conclave would be bestowed an Immortal-ranked magic treasure. Then this time…?

"Spread my command to the various marquisates and the major schools and sects of the world," the black-robed Emperor said calmly. "Tell them that I am paying close attention to this Conclave, and that I will personally officiate over it. Have the various marquisates, schools, and sects all arrange for their most supremely talented disciples to attend this Conclave."

"Command?" King Qi was even more speechless. The question of participation was generally a matter of personal choice.

"King Qi, you should know about the major upheavals that occurred in the Netherworld Kingdom a few decades ago, yes?" The black-robed Emperor looked at King Qi.

"I do. Of course I know about the collapse of the Six Paths of Reincarnation. But what does this have to do with the Conclave of Immortal Destiny…?" King Qi had some vague premonitions, but because his vision was limited to this major world, he didn't truly understand. In his heart, however, he understood that most likely it was the prior upheavals in the Netherworld Kingdom which caused the Emperor to pay such attention to this Conclave.

If that was the case, then he definitely could not be negligent.

"I'll send your commands right away," King Qi immediately said.

"Good. Arrange for the opening ceremony of the Conclave to be on the sixteenth of the first lunar month," the black-robed Emperor ordered.

"Yes," King Qi acknowledged.

Soon, the news that his Imperial Majesty the Grand Xia Emperor was going to personally host this Conclave of Immortal Destiny and was ordering the various marquisates, schools, and sects to arrange for their most elite of disciples to participate quickly spread from the imperial capital to the entirety of this major world. The countless marquises of this vast world, as well as the major powers located in the boundless seas, all received the Emperor's commands!

"The Emperor is going to personally officiate?"

"The last time the Emperor officiated a Conclave of Immortal Destiny was back when the revolting Dong'e clan and the other clans were annihilated. That was already countless years ago…and the only time that he officiated before that was the during the very first Conclave. Why is the Emperor going to host the Conclave of Immortal Destiny this time?"

All of the marquises, major schools, and major sects were all uneasy. They weren't worried about the deaths of their Wanxiang Disciples; even if all of them perished, that would simply mean that there would be a gap at a certain level of experts for a few centuries, after which new geniuses would have arisen.

What they were worried about was what the Emperor was planning. This was the Emperor who controlled the destiny of this entire major world! He was going to personally officiate, and had send commands to them…the hidden meaning behind this was extraordinary.

"Patriarch, it was the Emperor who officiated over the very first Conclave of Immortal Destiny; he also officiated the Conclave that occurred after the revolting Dong'e clan was wiped out. This will be only the third time the Emperor is personally hosting the Conclave…there must be a reason behind it."

"Enough. Don't trouble yourself about it. How can someone like you possibly comprehend the thoughts of someone as exalted as his Imperial Majesty? Even if he ordered all of the younger geniuses in our clan to go die, we would still obey. Arrange for the top three Wanxiang Disciples of the younger generation in our clan to go attend this Conclave of Immortal Destiny. As for the others…let them do as they please."

"Summon the three Sacred Childs. They are to prepare to join the Conclave of Immortal Destiny."

"Yes, Sacred Master."

"The five highest ranked disciples of our school, Heaven's Equal, are all required to participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. As for the others, they can do as they please."

"Yes, Supreme One."

Not a single one of the many powerful forces of the world of the Grand Xia dared to disobey. Those who received the orders were all at least on the level of the Northmont clan of Stillwater. As for the likes of the Black-White College? They weren't even qualified to receive these orders.

Another winter had arrived. The sun shone down on the accumulated snow, making it gleam brightly.

Ji Ning, Yuchi Xiyue, Yu Wei, Mu Northson, Adept Vastriver, and the Sloppy Daoist were all together, drinking Immortal nectar, eating seafood, and chatting casually.

"The order has already come down from within the imperial citadel," Xiyue said with a laugh. "The date of this Conclave has been set down as the sixteenth of the first lunar month. A little more than a month remains now."

Every single Conclave was hosted during the first lunar month.

"I was wandering the imperial capital the other day, and when I was eating, I heard people next to me chatting. They said that three of the nine top-ranked disciples of their school had arrived, and that various other figures from other schools had arrived as well. It seems as though very many geniuses are participating this time." Northson, holding a beasthead goblet of wine, spoke quite excitedly.

"From the intelligence reports I purchased from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain, I can see that one batch after another of geniuses are gathering here at the imperial capital," Yu Wei said solemnly.

Xiyue said with a laugh, "It seems as though you don't know enough of the inner details; in reality, it will be his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor himself, who will personally officiate over this Conclave of Immortal Destiny. The various schools, sects, and marquisates are all naturally sending their most talented geniuses over, in the hopes of ingratiating themselves with his Imperial Majesty."

"His Imperial Majesty is personally officiating?" Ning, Yu Wei, and the Sloppy Daoist were all surprised.

"Actually, all of the marquisates know about this matter, and I imagine some of the peerless geniuses of the various schools know as well. However, they don't dare to casually discuss this with others," Xiyue said. "I'm letting you know now, but don't let others know."

"Of course."

Ning and the others were still in a state of shock. The Grand Xia Emperor? The person who unified this entire major world? Someone who stood at the true peak of this land?

Ning and the others couldn't help but feel even more eager now.

As time flowed out, more and more geniuses arrived at the imperial capital of the Grand Xia. In fact, there were some people who originally hadn't planned to come, but decided to hurry over specifically because they heard that a truly staggering number of geniuses was attending this Conclave.

Time passed in the blink of an eye…and it was now the sixteenth day of the first lunar month.

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Chapter 2 – The World-Guarding Formation

The day was just beginning. The Wanxiang Adepts who were scattered in residences throughout the imperial capital, as well as the 3600 marquises and their entourages, were all floating towards the imperial citadel.

"So many people." Ji Ning, Yu Wei, and the Sloppy Daoist were currently flying together shoulder-to-shoulder on a cloud towards the imperial capital.

"Junior apprentice-brother, where are the others?" The Sloppy Daoist seemed to have just woken up. He asked, puzzled, "Why haven't junior apprentice-brother Vastriver and the others shown up?"

Ning laughed, "Junior apprentice-brother Northson and senior apprentice-brother Vastriver have gone to go join with the main delegation from Stillwater Commandery. His Imperial Majesty is personally officiating over this Conclave, and delegations have come from all 3600 commanderies to pay their respects to his Imperial Majesty. They have to be alongside the Stillwater delegation; otherwise, they won't even be able to enter the imperial citadel."

"Oh." The Sloppy Daoist nodded, now understanding. "I thought anyone who wanted to go watch could just go in and watch."

"Senior apprentice-brother, all you ever do is train. You should at least read some of the intelligence reports," Yu Wei said helplessly. "How can just anyone come and watch the Conclave of Immortal Destiny? Do you think the imperial citadel is just a place anyone can enter?"

"Well, I'm always in closed-door training, so…" the Sloppy Daoist scratched his head, grinning.

Ning explained, "There are three types of people who are entering the imperial citadel today. The first type consists of Wanxiang Adepts like us; because we are going to risk our lives in battle, we can just go in directly. The second type consists of the delegations that are led by the various marquises who are going to go pay their respects to his Imperial Majesty. The third type consists of the likes of Celestial Immortals, such as King Yan, who can take Princess Xiyue directly into the citadel. As for others? There might be some exceptional, powerful figures who can enter the citadel, but I wouldn't know anything about that."

The Sloppy Daoist nodded in understanding.

Right at this moment, as they were speaking, Ning's group had flown through the clouds and arrived at a large street. In the distance, they could see those four massive Fiendgods that were thirty thousand meters tall who were guarding the gates to the imperial citadel.

Whoooooosh. One squad after another of Immortal cultivators flew past, either in groups of two or three, or in giant delegations. All of them were flying towards the imperial citadel.

However, the gates to the imperial citadel remained shut.

Soon, Ning's group arrived as well, and they landed.

"So many people." The Sloppy Daoist looked around at his surroundings. A vast, tightly packed cluster of more than a hundred thousand individuals had already gathered outside the imperial citadel. Some were here to participate in the Conclave, but most were here to spectate. A steady, unbroken stream of Immortal cultivators continued to descend from the heavens.

"We might as well wait patiently. When the nine gongs ring out, the citadel gates will open," Ning said.

They waited for nearly two hours. The Golden Crow had already risen high into the sky, and the light of the sun shone down upon the entire imperial capital.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Nine consecutive gongs rang out. The sound was melodious, seeming to come down from the Nine Heavens, causing the million-plus individuals who had gathered outside the imperial citadel to all quiet down.

RUUUMBLE!

The tall gates of the imperial citadel suddenly swung open. The four massive Fiendgods stared down at the million-plus humans. One of them, a fire-spewing, fire-skinned Fiendgod, spoke out: "Wanxiang Adepts who wish to participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny, you can now enter the imperial capital. If you enter, then you must participate in the Conclave; there will be no chance to change your mind. You may now enter!"

Instantly, with a series of whooshes, a vast locust swarm of figures all began to fly towards the imperial citadel's gates, blocking out the skies as they did so.

"How many people is this?!" The Sloppy Daoist's eyes were completely round.

"Normally, each Conclave of Immortal Destiny will generally have twenty or thirty thousand competitors," Ning said with a laugh. "In this Conclave…since his Imperial Majesty is personally hosting it, this Conclave is extraordinarily special, and I estimate that there should be roughly a hundred thousand or so." Much of this information had come to Ning via his cousin.

"On average, each commandery has sent thirty individuals?" The Sloppy Daoist pondered on this. "It seems as though 99% of the formidable elites of the world have all come."

"This Conclave of Immortal Destiny is different from normal ones," Yu Wei said.

As they flew into the imperial capital, they saw a wide, spacious thoroughfare.

"Those who shall participate in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny, follow me!" A deep, booming voice shook the heavens. Up ahead, a squad of Imperial Guards had appeared in midair, and they were guiding the way.

They followed the wide thoroughfare and quickly arrived at an incomparably vast plaza. This plaza was so large that one couldn't see to the end of it with the naked eye alone. It was paved with pitch-black stones, and the pavestones were all covered with incomparably complicated runes. The runes covered the entire plaza, causing it to emanate a terrifying, heart-freezing aura.

"Those who shall participate in the Conclave are all to wait in this region," the Imperial Guards up ahead instructed.

Almost none of these geniuses and talents from around the world had ever been in the imperial capital. They were all rather awestruck, and they behaved obediently, all moving towards the designated region.

Whoosh!

The Imperial Guards quickly split apart, forming a perimeter that completely surrounded the region. They stood there with blank faces, not moving at all. These Imperial Guards also knew that today, his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor, was going to be personally hosting the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. It was rare for Imperial Guards like them to encounter his Imperial Majesty; how could they not be extremely earnest and serious today?

"I imagine that this plaza is at least ten thousand kilometers wide." The chubby Sloppy Daoist lowered his heads, inspecting the runes. "And it contains an extremely terrifying formation, one that vastly surpasses any I have ever sensed."

"Right." Yu Wei had a solemn look on her face as well as she carefully inspected the plaza.

The voice of the giant yellow bear rang out in Ning's mind. "It seems as though the roots of this Grand Xia Dynasty of yours are actually quite deep. Based on what I can tell from the runic formations covering this plaza…it should be a single formation-diagram! This formation-diagram was formed from the linkage of more than three Pure Yang magic treasures, and more than a thousand Immortal-ranked magic treasures. With but a thought, the Grand Xia Emperor could probably activate this titanic formation, formed from all those treasures. A formation formed from so many treasures…it should be a vast formation designed to safeguard his headquarters, and also to safeguard this entire major world of yours. Formidable, formidable. Incredible! I imagine that even most Pure Yang True Immortals are unable to lay such a grand formation; the person who laid out this world-guarding formation is absolutely one of the truly top powers of the Three Realms, most likely on par with Master himself!"

"What?!" Ning was shocked. Comparable with Daoist Threelives? A formation which even most Pure Yang True Immortals would not be able to establish? A world-guarding formation? Meant to protect this entire major world?

What Ning didn't know…was that the guess of the spirit of the underwater estate was absolutely correct. Although this ancient world-guarding formation hadn't been established by the master of the Grand Xia Emperor, and had instead been set up by another major power who was equivalent to him in power…it was indeed meant to protect this entire major world, and the headquarters of the Grand Xia Dynasty.

"If the Emperor of your Grand Xia is a Pure Yang True Immortal…with a formation like this at his back, there are extremely few figures in the entirety of the Three Realms who can do anything to him at all. The major powers who are capable of acting against him, upon seeing the world-guarding formation, would probably give face to the major power who set up the formation and stay their hands." The giant yellow bear said. "Formidable, formidable! The background of your Grand Xia Emperor is truly exceptional. He lives up to his reputation as someone capable of controlling an entire major world."

The spirit of the underwater estate was tremendously experienced; at a single glance, he could tell how extraordinary the Grand Xia Emperor's background was.

"Then would his Imperial Majesty be able to discover your presence?" Ning asked.

"Don't worry at all. Even the supreme major power who set up this formation would at most notice something unique about the underwater estate, but they can forget about trying to spy inside it. This is, after all, the treasure which Master poured all of his efforts into as his legacy." The giant yellow bear was extremely confident.

Ning nodded.

Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!

Ning and all of the other Wanxiang Adept participants of the Conclave all turned to look. One delegation after another, in absolute perfect formation, came flying over. They came over methodically, clearly understanding quite a bit about the rules of propriety. By contrast, Ning and the other geniuses had all flown in like a horde of locusts.

"3600 commanderies, and the four seas…" Ning could immediately tell that all of these delegations were split up by commanderies. The delegations all flew in, then settled down onto the plaza.

"Stillwater Commandery." Yu Wei pointed towards the distance. Ning and the Sloppy Daoist both looked over.

The Stillwater delegation was led by a tall, skinny, black-robed man. His aura was heroic and majestic, and his bearing was extraordinary as well. It was the Marquis of Stillwater. Behind him was a group of Northmont clansmen. Amongst them, Ning noticed Northmont Baiwei, who was obediently following within the crowd. Behind them were ten-plus individuals from the Black-White College, as well as representatives from the Dragonhunter clan, the Bluewood clan, and the other major clans of Stillwater Commandery. The entire Stillwater delegation consisted of at least hundreds of individuals.

The delegations from the 3600 commanderies and the four seas all landed in perfect unison.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

One figure after another now began to soar in through the skies.

"Cousin." Ning could see that the figures who were flying through the skies included King Yan, who had led Xiyue directly into the skies and through the clouds.

"Is that junior apprentice-sister Ninelotus?!" The Sloppy Daoist called out in surprise.

Ning saw her as well.

Ninelotus was currently flying through the skies alongside a blue-robed man. Ning had heard his cousin speak of this as well…only Celestial Immortals were allowed to fly directly into the main hall of the Skylight Palace and go see the Grand Xia Emperor. The others actually wouldn't even have a chance to see him at all. Celestial Immortals were permitted to bring two followers with them, and so the blue-robed man should be a Celestial Immortal.

As Ning lifted his head, Ninelotus looked downwards with a searching gaze as well. Suddenly, their gazes intersected.

A familiar yet strange feeling resonated between their hearts.

Both of them couldn't help but look away.

The highest point of the main hall of the Skylight Palace.

The Grand Xia Emperor, dressed in black robes, was seated on high atop his throne. The individuals below him were divided into two columns, all standing. Those standing closest to the Grand Xia Emperor were naturally the Celestial Immortals and Kings of the Xiamang clan, while those towards the rear consisted of the Celestial Immortals from other parts of the Grand Xia Empire. Although technically speaking, there had been no order for the Celestial Immortals to all attend as well, many of them were quite keen and sharp; they, too, sensed that there was something strange with the fact that the Grand Xia Emperor was going to personally officiate over this Conclave, and so quite a few of them had hurried over as well.

At a glance, one could see nearly a thousand Celestial Immortals who stood there before the Emperor.

"We bow in respect to you, your Imperial Majesty."

King Qi led the first respectful salute. Instantly, all the other Celestial Immortals bowed as well. As for the followers who had accompanied the Celestial Immortals, they all fell to their knees.

In this moment…

Every single individual present on the vast plaza located far below the Skylight Palace, be it the hundred thousand-plus geniuses who were participating in the Conclave or the million-plus members of the delegations from the 3600 commanderies and four seas…they all knelt down in unison, kowtowing and pressing their foreheads against the ground. In unison, they called out:

"WE BOW IN RESPECT TO YOU, YOUR IMPERIAL MAJESTY!"

The sound echoed like thunder, shaking the entire world.

"ARISE!" The voice of the Grand Xia Emperor shook the world as well.

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Chapter 3 – The Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers

The black-robed Emperor, seated at the highest point of the main hall of the Skylight Palace, spoke out. "King Qi."

"Your Imperial Majesty," King Qi immediately acknowledged.

"Announce the rules for this Conclave," the black-robed Emperor instructed.

"Yes."

King Qi immediately flew out of the main hall. He stood atop a cloud, staring downwards as his voice echoed out within the heavens. "This Conclave of Immortal Destiny has a total of 109,362 participants!"

His voice rang out clearly, echoing in skies. More than nine thousand kilometers below him, the Wanxiang Adepts of the Grand Xia Empire as well as other major worlds all listened carefully.

"More than 109,000?" Ning's eyebrows twitched. Although he could clearly calculate the number of people present through a simple sweep of his divine sense…this was the imperial citadel, and the Grand Xia Empire was seated directly above them. No one dared to wildly spread out their divine sense to investigate the place.

The voice above them continued to speak. "Wanxiang Adepts, each of you shall receive a talisman. All of you shall enter the magic treasure which his Imperial Majesty shall use; the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers! This painting is capable of holding the cosmos, of holding qian and kun; it forms an independent world of its own. Within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, you can battle each other and seize each other's talismans without any restrictions. If you feel that you are not strong enough, you can discard your talisman, which will cause you to immediately be teleported out from the Diagram. Although this will represent defeat, you will at least be able to stay alive."

"Those who choose to give up…"

"Those who are killed…"

"Your talismans will be taken away by the victor of your battle. The length of time you are to remain within the Diagram is at most one year; after a year, the eighty competitors with the most talismans will have passed the trial of the Diagram. If, however, before the year is up…if, for example, after three months, only eighty of you are still alive…then the trial of the Diagram will be stopped early, and the eighty lucky survivors will have passed."

"If after a year has passed and eighty victors are selected, but other Wanxiang Adepts remain alive within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, then the remaining survivors will be put together in one place and engage in a final battle. You shall fight until only sixteen of you remain. Those sixteen will receive chances as well."

"In other words, the trial of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountain and Seas will have at least eighty victors, and at most ninety six."

"Remember – within the Diagram, you are forbidden from using any Dao-seals, golems, or strange treasures! This trial is meant to test your personal ability. All of your actions within the Diagram shall be under the gaze of his Imperial Majesty, as well as the gazes of the Celestial Immortals present. You absolutely cannot act improperly; those who disobey shall be slain without exception!"

Slain without exception!

These final three words caused the hearts of all of the competitors to quiver.

"At least eighty? At most ninety six?" Ning, Yu Wei, and the Sloppy Daoist exchanged glances. They all could sense how bloody the upcoming battles would be.

This was absolutely insane.

All of these hundred thousand-plus individuals were peerless geniuses who were at least at Holyfire's level! A hundred thousand-plus peerless geniuses, many of whom would most likely have a high chance of becoming Earth Immortals or Loose Immortals…but because of the Conclave of Immortal Destiny, they had to engage in a bloody battle against each other. Although it was said that one could give up, in the heat of a battle, it was very likely that many would end up perishing.

"At most ninety six…and the world has 3600 commanderies, as well as four vast seas. On average, there will only be a single victor for every few dozen commanderies." The Sloppy Daoist let out a sigh. "This is crazy."

"I wonder if the three of us will be able to overcome this trial." Yu Wei's gaze was much more solemn now as well.

Ning, too, felt the pressure.

In the past, the Conclave had generally not been this bloody; in the past, there were usually only twenty or thirty thousand Wanxiang Adepts, all of whom would go through several rounds of selection, resulting in the top hundred, then top fifty, then slowly a top ten and top three.

But this time, more than a hundred thousand of them were going to be sent directly into the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, with this competition intended to produce between eighty to ninety six victors.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

King Qi walked back, bowing respectfully. "Reporting to your Imperial Majesty: The proclamation has been made."

"Mm." The black-robed Emperor nodded lightly. His gaze pierced past the blocking hall and clouds, landing upon the bodies of the hundred thousand-plus youths. He wanted to watch…watch and see which of them would rise up to become truly powerful figures within this upcoming storm for the Three Realms.

"There are more than a hundred who are surrounded by the golden light of karmic virtue." The black-robed Emperor reflected silently on this. "The more karmic merits one has rendered, the better one's luck shall be. But it is also possible for those who have ordinary karmic merits to be tremendously lucky as well, and sometimes even astonishingly so."

Karmic luck and karmic virtue weren't identical. If one had a high level of karmic virtue, then one would naturally be blessed with additional luck. But, for example, if one apprenticed one's self to a major power of the Three Realms, one would also be blessed by karmic luck. If one's parents were major powers of the Three Realm, one would similarly be blessed.

Or perhaps, because of a tremendous stroke of fortune, one would suddenly have the blessing of luck.

One could tell at a glance if a person had high or low karmic virtue, but luck…this was unfathomable and invisible.

Whoosh. The black-robed Emperor suddenly produced a wrapped diagram in his hand. He unfurled the diagram, and atop it, one could vaguely make out a painting of a bright moon, hanging over a mountain and a river.

The eyes of the Celestial Immortals all lit up. The Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers…

This was a Pure Yang magic treasure. It was a tremendously intriguing artifact for them…but at the same time, these Celestial Immortals were all pondering nonstop. Today, the Grand Xia Emperor had barely said anything to these Celestial Immortals before immediately beginning the initial selection tournament for the Conclave of Immortal Destiny. From this, they could tell how much importance this Conclave held for the Grand Xia Emperor. In fact, the very fact of him taking out the Diagram and using it as the place for the competition was proof of how seriously he took this.

Rumble…

Ning and the others all raised their heads, looking towards the skies. The delegations from the 3600 commanderies and the four seas all raised their heads to stare as well.

In the air above them, an utterly enormous painting, at least ten thousand kilometers long, had suddenly appeared. It blocked out the skies, and one could even vaguely make out the world within the diagram.

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

Ning, Yu Wei, the Sloppy Daoist, and the rest of the 109,362 individuals, who had all been just standing there, were suddenly and involuntarily pulled into the skies. All of them were sucked inwards as the surface of the vast painting began to undulate. When each of them touched the painting, their bodies also began to undulate; it was as though they were drops of rainwater that had landed on a lake.

In just the blink of an eye, all of them had completely disappeared.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace. The black-robed Emperor finally revealed a smile as he said calmly, "This trial within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers shall most likely go on for a year. Everyone, watch at your leisure. Prepare the banquet!"

Instantly, a large number of maids immediately moved over. They placed down long tables, then delivere pitchers of Immortal nectar and platters of Immortal fruit.

All of the Celestial Immortals sat down in the lotus position. As for the followers that had come alongside them, they sat down in the lotus position to the side of and slightly behind the Celestial Immortals.

"You can watch everything which is going on within the Diagram." The black-robed Emperor pointed towards the clouds outside the main hall. The vast, ten thousand kilometer long diagram hung there amidst the clouds. The world within the diagram was clearly visible; within it, there were mountains, rivers, a bright moon, and more than a hundred thousand Wanxiang Adepts who were scattered in different areas.

"Dongyan, tell me, why do you think his Imperial Majesty cares so much about this Conclave of Immortal Destiny?" A scabby-looking old man seated next to the Dongyan Forefather spoke out. "He's personally hosting it, and even commanded people to participate. Although so many of us Celestial Immortals have arrived, he is still mostly paying attention to the Conclave. Can it be that this Conclave is very special? Does it involve the reincarnation of someone exceptionally powerful? As I recall, a few decades back, the Netherworld Kingdom suffered a sudden attack, and the Six Paths of Reincarnation collapsed, right? Can this have something to do with it?"

"How am I supposed to know? However, the collapse of the Six Paths of Reincarnation is an absolutely world-changing event. The mysteries behind its collapse must definitely be quite shocking. We should just stay in our own major world and not go running around wildly; otherwise, something might happen and we might even fall. In addition, although the Six Paths of Reincarnation collapsed, the venerable Daofather has re-established the cycle of reincarnation for us and several dozen other major worlds. We have the protection of the venerable Daofather; there's no need for us to panic," the Dongyan Forefather sent back.

The scabby-looking old man nodded as well.

While the Dongyan Forefather and Patriarch Riverbridge were discussing their worries regarding the impending storm, Ninelotus, seated behind the Dongyan Forefather, was carefully watching the ten thousand kilometer long painting.

The painting was truly enormous, so much so that the individual figures within it could be seen clearly.

"Where is Ji Ning?" Ninelotus couldn't help but search for him.

"Where is Ji Ning?" Yuchi Xiyue was seated behind King Yan in the lotus position. She, too, was carefully staring at the enormous painting. "Little brother, you have to be careful. Be careful!"

"Where is Master?"

In the plaza below the painting, amidst the delegation led by the Marquis of Stillwater, Mu Northson was standing next to a large, snowy white hound and an azure-robed maiden. Ning had gone out to battle, but spirit-beasts were forbidden from participating. Thus, Uncle White and Little Qing had to stay with Northson for now as they watched the battle.

"Don't worry. Senior apprentice-brother is a truly monstrous genius; back in the Witchriver Immortal Estate, he was in such dire straits, but in the end he was still able to kill Youngflame Nong and that Fiendgod. He absolutely will not easily die or easily give up." Northson's eyes were shining as he stared at the skies above him, and at the massive, illusory world that had appeared there.

This illusory world was an image of the situation within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers. One could clearly see every single figure located within the mountains, the rivers, the grasslands, and the forests of the world.

The Whitewater Hound, Little Qing, and Northson quickly scanned the massive painting with their gaze, flashing past one figure after another.

"Look." Uncle White suddenly spoke out as he stared at one location. Northson and Little Qing followed Uncle White's gaze, looking over as well. Indeed; within one particular corner of that world, there was a fur-clad youth within a mountain gorge.

"Senior apprentice-brother." Northson's eyes lit up.

"Master." Little Qing watched with excitement as well.

The nearby Immortal Fivecraze quickly discovered Ning as well. His eyes were also filled with excitement.

The people of this plaza, filled with delegations from the 3600 commanderies and four seas, were all staring upwards, trying to find the people they cared about within the painting. They quickly were able to find them, and they began to watch eagerly, quietly praying for the people they cared about to end up as one of the final 96 survivors.

Within the world of the Diagram.

Ning had suddenly felt the world change as soon as he touched the diagram. He had suddenly appeared within a mountain gorge.

"A gorge?" The Darknorth swords instantly appeared in Ning's hands. He carefully scanned his surroundings, so cautious that he didn't even use divine sense. This was because, upon using divine sense, the enemy would locate him as soon as he found them. A solid majority of the participants of this Conclave all possessed divine sense, after all.

Swoosh. Suddenly, a light flashed past Ning's eyes, and a green talisman appeared before him.

"Each of you shall have a talisman. If you no longer wish to fight and wish to give up, you only need to throw the talisman away, and I will immediately throw you out of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers." The voice of the Grand Xia Emperor rang out in the minds of the hundred thousand-plus individuals.

Ning immediately reached out to grasp the talisman.

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Chapter 4 – True Immortals, Bodhisattvas

After taking the talisman, Ning turned to stare at the gorge before him. He was the only person present within it.

"So I was separated from senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei and eldest apprentice-brother Sloppy, just like that. It makes sense. The Grand Xia Emperor won't let us so easily join forces. In addition, per the rules, the more talismans you acquire, the better a chance you would have of passing this trial. If I don't kill others, others will still try to kill me. In this trial…I will have to kill!" Ning made up his mind on what to do, but suddenly, his ears twitched.

Rumble…

A faint ripple of power swept out.

With a swoosh, Ning immediately flew to the very top of the nearby mountain, stealthily looking towards the source of the ripples. In the distant wilderness, eight men and women were separately using magic treasures and techniques against each other. It was an utter clash of attacks, causing the color of the sky to change. These were all peerless geniuses from various places of the Grand Xia Empire, all of whom had the pride innate to all geniuses. How could they easily admit defeat?

However, one of the young women quickly began to weaken slightly, and the other seven immediately began to focus their attacks on her. That woman, dressed in violet, immediately sent out her divine sense to scan the nearby 300 kilometers, then hurriedly sent mentally, "Everyone, let's stop fighting. There are a total of 103 Wanxiang Adepts who are hidden in the surrounding area. If we keep fighting like this, we are going to get ambushed by others."

"What?! 103?!" The other seven were badly frightened.

None of them knew exactly how large this world within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers was; they thought that a short battle wouldn't attract too much attention. Who would have imagined that 103 individuals would come? Although they were very self-confident, they knew that all the participants in this Conclave were formidable and could not be underestimated.

Rumble!

After the violet-robed maiden sent out her divine sense, the other Wanxiang Adepts all sent out their own divine senses to investigate in succession. Some of them were reincarnated Immortals, while others had been at the Wanxiang level for far too long, and so their soul had also reached the divine sense level. A few also has supreme visualization techniques. In short, they did a scan, and they were all shocked by what they found.

"A fur-clad youth? That's Ji Ning! Ji Ning, up there on the mountain! He's the one who killed a Loose Immortal."

"Ji Ning is atop that mountain."

"Ji Ning is ranked in the top hundred for this Conclave. Let's join forces to wipe him out first." The divine senses joined together as they began to converse through it.

Since they had decided to attend this Conclave, they had naturally purchased intelligence reports from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. Ever since Ning's Primaltwin had killed Immortal Floatcloud, his fame had skyrocketed. Even the Heavenly Treasures Mountain had come to believe that Ning's Primaltwin, despite being only at the peak Primal level, was capable of killing supreme Loose Immortals. This meant that Ning was superior to Loose Immortal Floatcloud in terms of the Dao and in terms of techniques; naturally, this caused Ning to become quite famous.

"Let's join forces and wipe him out."

"Let's go."

These Wanxiang Adepts quickly came to the same conclusion. They howled through the air, flying towards the mountain top where Ning was standing. More than a hundred figures suddenly flew out, moving at astonishing speeds like thunderbolts or swift gales.

Ning was badly startled.

"These individuals are all heroic talents in their own locales, but they don't seem to care about their bearing at all." Ning was helpless; he had watched those eight fight, and none of them were easy to deal with. He was confident in being able to deal with eight, but more than a hundred? That was suicide!

"Time to go." Ning waved his arm, and a ship-type treasure appeared before him. Ning immediately jumped into it. Swoosh! The ship instantly transformed into a streak of black light, disappearing without a trace into the distance.

"Ji Ning ran quite quickly."

"He killed Youngflame Nong, then a Loose Immortal. It is said that he is valued by King Yan as well. He really has quite a few treasures, and he really was able to run quite fast." The hundred-plus men and women in the air felt helpless as well. Unless they had already completely encircled him, if someone like Ning who was clearly more powerful than them wished to flee, it would be hard for them to stop him.

They quickly began to stare vigilantly against each other, stealthily pulling apart.

Nobody wanted to suddenly start a giant, chaotic battle of over a hundred people. They were confident in their ability to handle a wild battle with seven or eight people, but a wild battle with over a hundred…once a person was trapped, there would be no way to escape.

"Time to go."

"This is going to be troublesome. More than a hundred thousand people, all of whom are crafty and cautious. To be able to survive to the very end and become one of the final 96…that is going to be very difficult."

"Power alone won't be enough. Even the most powerful competitor, when surrounded and attacked by a hundred in a formation, will have no option but death."

The people all quickly departed.

As for Ning…only after his ship had fled more than several thousand kilometers and entered a large mountain did Ning reappear.

"To overcome the trial of the Diagram…power is just one aspect of it. This is also a trial of the mind, a trial of intelligence." Ning quickly understood this. Everyone was a Wanxiang Adept, after all, and everyone was a supreme talent. They had all essentially reached the limit of what was possible for a Wanxiang Adept to accomplish; to be able to improve any further would be incredibly difficult.

The average person here was at least comparable to an ordinary peak Primal Daoist! If a hundred people joined together in a formation, then they would definitely be comparable to a supreme Loose Immortal!

"I have to be careful and cautious…and also ruthless. I need to seize any opportunities and to kill at high speed. I can't let myself be surrounded." Ning nodded to himself.

In the plaza below, the delegates from the 3600 commanderies and the four seas all raised their heads and watched, extremely nervous.

Previously, they had all felt that their own disciples were quite formidable, but as they watched…they realized that every single person was crafty and capable. There were more than ten thousand who had reached the twelfth level of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]! There were even more who had cultivated earthfire or dire-ice to the first grade. None of them were easy to deal with.

"Why is it that I suddenly feel as though senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei, and eldest apprentice-brother are all in a lot of danger?" Northson blinked.

"Right." Adept Vastriver shook his head. "As I see it…I imagine that most likely, more than half of these individuals are reincarnated Immortals."

The Whitewater Hound and Little Qing just stared fixedly at the skies, paying attention to Ning the entire time. Wherever Ning ran to, their gazes would turn to.

The atmosphere within the main hall of the Skylight Palace, by contrast, was much more relaxed.

The black-robed Emperor sat there. He took a sip from the wineglass he was holding, then said with a smile, "This Conclave shall initially proceed within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers for a year. This is just the beginning; the most exciting parts will come later."

The Celestial Immortals seated below him were all chatting and laughing as well.

"That little fellow isn't bad. He actually killed someone, then scared someone into throwing their talisman away. Who is that little fellow?"

"I don't recognize him."

"Never seen him."

The Celestial Immortals chatted and laughed, but as they watched, they saw that likes of the long-famous 'Xiamang Zishan', 'Cangwu Jiu', 'Adept Woodpass', and others had yet to truly put on an awe-inspiring display. Instead, they suffered repeated attacks by groups of others and were often put in quite sorry positions. To the contrary, it was the figures that they had never heard about and who were heretofore unknown who were suddenly revealing their terrifying power.

"A cataclysm of the Three Realms truly does cause heroes to gather." The black-robed Emperor was quite satisfied. "I imagine that many formidable figures who no one had ever known about in the past are going to display their truly shocking power."

Right at this moment…

Suddenly, a clear voice rang out. "Fellow Daoist Xiamang, I come uninvited; are you willing to welcome me, fellow Daoist?"

The black-robed Emperor's face changed slightly, and the thousand Celestial Immortals seated below him all quieted down as well. From the mists and clouds outside, eight figures suddenly appeared, each of whom had different appearances. There was a dissolute, handsome man who was dressed in an azure Daoist robe; there was a middle-aged Buddhist who was dressed in yellow robes; there was an old man who was riding an old bull; there was a muscular, golden-eyed man who was dressed in dragon robes…

All eight of them had marvelous, unfathomable, profound auras about them.

The eight caused the thousand Celestial Immortals to secretly feel as though their hearts were trembling. As for the Grand Xia Emperor, he immediately arose from his throne and walked down.

"Fellow Daoists, why is it that you've decided to come to my Grand Xia?" The black-robed Emperor laughed, "Come, come, come, come and sit!" He waved a hand, and on the two sides next to his throne, eight more seats and tables appeared. Immortal fruit and nectar appeared atop the tables as well, and they were far better than the fare provided to the Celestial Immortals.

"Why we came to your Grand Xia? Fellow Daoist Xiamang, can it be that you don't know?" The leader of the group, an azure-robed man who carried an Immortal sword on his back, laughed in a hearty manner. "The Three Realms are currently filled with dangerous hidden undercurrents. Most likely, a great cataclysm is coming. This is precisely the point in time when heroic figures will emerge into the world. Your Grand Xia is one of the most highly ranked of the three thousand major worlds in terms of karmic luck; perhaps one of the peerless figures of the future will be born here. That is why I, Lu Dongbin, have shamelessly come here. You won't mind, will you, fellow Daoist Xiamang?" 1

Although his voice echoed loudly, none of the nearby Celestial Immortals could hear anything.

"Senior apprentice-brother Xiamang, my own major world just concluded a Conclave of Immortal Destiny, and so Eastflower paid a visit to my place, then insisted on pulling me here as well." The muscular, golden-eyed man who was dressed in dragon robes spoke in a resigned manner.

"Sovereign Hao, since you knew how shameless this Lu Dongbin is, you truly should have stopped him." The Xia Emperor spoke with resignation.

"As for myself, this old man is just here to watch the fun. Don't worry, don't worry; I'm not here to try and snatch some of the geniuses from your major world," the old man riding the old bull laughed merrily.

"I'm just here to watch the fun as well."

"I'm just wandering about."

They all spoke out.

This caused the Xia Emperor to feel exceptionally resigned; the individuals in front of him were all awe-inspiringly famous and influential figures of the Three Realms. For example, there was Lu Dongbin, the leader of the Eight Immortals of the High Caves. Lu Dongbing was the reincarnation of Emperor Eastflower, and back when he had been Emperor Eastflower, he had apprenticed himself to a major power. After reincarnating and becoming Lu Dongbin, he had apprenticed himself to a second major power.

Behind him, a single person, stood two major powers. What's more, Lu Dongbin had merged the strong points from both schools, infusing them into his Dao of the Sword. He was known in the Three Realms to be frighteningly powerful…and he was a famous, awe-inspiring Sword Immortal! Even amongst Pure Yang True Immortals, he was ranked towards the very front.

However, Lu Dongbin was utterly shameless, had a weird temper, liked to play tricks on people, and cursed or giggled as he pleased…and he often liked to wander about the mortal realms, leaving behind quite a few legacies in many of the worlds he passed through.

"And you, Mahasthamaprapta? Why have you, a member of the Buddhist way, come here?" The Xia Emperor's gaze fell upon the yellow-robed Buddhist. Followers of the Daoist path felt a certain degree of disliking towards followers of the Buddhist path. 2

The male Buddhist had a smile on his face that made others feel calm. Clasping his palms together in a prayer, he said, "I'm just here to take a look."

The Xia Emperor was helpless.

Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta, the Bodhisattva of Great Strength, was someone who had an extremely high status amongst those of the Buddhist path. He was someone who had followed Lord Buddha for a long period of time, and was also someone comparable to a Pure Yang True Immortal. In addition, he had an extremely good temperament, always having a smile on his face whenever he met anyone. In the face of such a truly kind, amiable individual…there was no way the Xia Emperor could shoo him off.

"Everyone, take your seats. Why are you all standing? Others will think that the Xia clan doesn't understand how to treat guests." The Xia Emperor said, rather impolitely, "But everyone, please understand this; I'm not the only person paying attention to this Conclave of Immortal Destiny of the Grand Xia. Even my venerable Master is paying close attention to it as well. Thus, the only one who can choose a disciple must be my venerable Master."

"We naturally won't fight over with the Daofather over a disciple. Xiamang, stop worrying. After you have made your picks, if I take a fancy to one of the remaining individuals, there won't be any problems if I choose him, right?" Lu Dongbin had been the first to plop his butt down on the seat, then had picked up a bottle of Immortal nectar and started to drink. His eyes instantly lit up.

"Hey, this is good wine. Not bad! Your Xiamang clan truly lives up to its reputation as being of the lineage of the imperial Xia clan of the Primordial Era. You have so much fine wine, and it's even better than the Celestial Court's. What's the name of this wine?" As he spoke, Lu Dongbin's eyes began to spin as he turned to stare at the massive Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, carefully inspecting each of the young men and women within it.

1. Lu Dongbin is one of the most famous Immortals in Chinese mythology, and he is reputed to lead an entire group known as the Eight Immortals, although these eight are not them. From this point on in the story, a lot of 'real' Chinese mythology is going to be incorporated. I will do my best to point it out when it occurs via footnotes.

2. Mahasthamaprapta is a bodhisattva of wisdom; his name means 'great strength'.

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Chapter 5 – Life in the Diagram

The other Pure Yang True Immortals all turned their gazes towards the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers as well. The Xia Emperor felt resigned. He mused to himself, "It seems it truly is the time for a cataclysm to befall the Three Realms. All the major powers are beginning to make their preparations. My Master, Daofather Crimsonbright, has previously provided some tutelage to Lu Dongbin in the past as well. In his past life, Lu Dongbin had a very close relationship with me. He's not an issue, nor are the others…but that bodhisattva, Mahasthamaprapta!"

The Xia Emperor knew very well that the supreme powers of the Three Realms were divided into many different organizations.

Fortunately, all of the eight Pure Yang True Immortals who had arrived today had major powers backing them who were on good terms with his own master, Daofather Crimsonbright. The only exception was Mahasthamaprapta, who was of the Buddhist path. It couldn't be said that he was on good terms with Daofather Crimsonbright…but they weren't enemies either.

"I have to be careful. If he takes a fancy to one of the individuals in this Conclave, Mahasthamaprapta might actually plot to abduct the person in secret," the Xia Emperor pondered to himself.

Within the Diagram.

Ning was atop a dwarf mountan, his body covered by trees and shrubs.

"Before killing Immortal Floatcloud, I was a very ordinary, unremarkable figure in the intelligence reports of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain who was casually mentioned in them. After killing him, however, my name became widespread throughout the Grand Xia Empire. Even the intelligence reports praise me tremendously, claiming that I have the power to rank in the top hundred." Ning felt helpless.

The Heavenly Treasures Mountain had to have some margin for error, and so in truth, they had only ranked thirty-two individuals as having the power to rank in the top hundred! The thirty-two the Heavenly Treasures Mountain ranked as being in the top hundred were all but guaranteed to truly have that power…and Ning was one of those thirty-two!

From this, one could imagine how within the Diagram, the top thirty-two such as Xiamang Zishan, Cangwu Jiu, Ji Ning would instantly be attacked by groups upon them being discovered! The other Immortal cultivators all believed that the likes of Ji Ning had a very high chance of winning, and so they needed to eliminate them as soon as possible. Only then would they themselves have a chance to pass this trial.

"I need to change myself slightly." Ning had just suffered an attack from more than a hundred individuals. Fortunately, his treasured ship had been able to flee fast enough.

Whoosh.

Ning's magic robes transformed into ordinary black robes, no longer appearing like furs.

"There should be quite a few black-robed youths," Ning mused to himself. "I won't be recognized on sight, at least."

"Time go to."

From a fur-clad youth to a black-robed youth. Ning quietly began to wander the world of the Diagram. Every so often, he would spread out his divine sense to scan the ten surrounding kilometers.

Within this short distance, Ning could instantly move to a location…and that way, he wouldn't startle too many with his divine sense.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! He spread out his divine sense repeatedly. On the eighteenth time, Ning immediately discovered a white-robed maiden who suddenly turned her head towards him, having noticed him.

Swoosh! Ning seemed to have transformed into a giant Roc, howling through the air as he moved at lightning speed and charged down from his mountain peak. In a flash, he appeared in front of the white-robed maiden.

"Do you want to die?" The white-robed maiden's face turned cold, and a pair of short sticks appeared in her hands, flashing with electric light.

As Ning attacked, the first thing he did was will an enormous Waterflame Lotus to appear. After developing the Lotusflower Swordland, he had gained insights into both this technique and his Waterflame Lotus due to their commonalities. During the past year at the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, Ning had carefully worked to further refine his technique, making the Waterflame Lotus technique even more perfect!

In addition, after a full year of cultivation, the earthfire and dire-ice in Ning's body had already risen to the first grade as well!

The earthfire and dire-ice of the first grade served as the foundation, and the True Lunar Tattoo and the True Solar Tattoo within his divine body activated fire and water of the natural world in support. The Dao of the Sword, the Dao of Rainwater, the Dao of the Inferno, the Dao of the Gale, and the Dao of Space were all joined together as well…to finally form into this Waterflame Lotus, which now had reached a ridiculous level of power.

"Eh?" The white-robed maiden was completely shocked. This enormous Waterflame Lotus was at least three thousand meters, completely surrounding her.

"A technique?" The white-robed maiden laughed coldly. Her body suddenly expanded dramatically in size as she transformed into a thirty-six meter tall giant. The giant white-robed maiden also activated the [Three Heads, Six Arms] divine ability. In her hands, she now wielded six of the short sticks, each of which flashed with electric light. The sticks in her hand howled through the air as she smashed downwards towards the layers of Waterflame Lotus petals binding her.

BANG!

BANG!

It was as though two mountains had collided. The six short sticks carried the majestic, divine power of lightning. Given the power of this woman, a Fiendgod Body Refiner, when she smashed down upon the flower, a layer of leaves cracked…but new leaves were then born from the Waterflame Lotus.

"What?!" The white-robed maiden was shocked. Per her predictions, she should've been able to smash through this technique like rotting wood, but in reality, the breaking process was very slow. The enemy's technique could continue to be maintained indefinitely.

"What a fellow. This white-robed maiden is probably even a bit more powerful than Daoist Snowplume was." Ning was shocked as well. "Fortunately, my earthfire and dire-ice have both reached the first grade, and I've further perfected this technique. If this was a year ago…she probably would've broken through it. However…since you can't break through my Waterflame Lotus, then you have lost."

Whoosh!

More than seven hundred flying swords immediately appeared in the air around Ning, with the Nethercold swords serving as the core. All of them were Earth-ranked flying swords.

"Go!" Ning pointed, and instantly, a golden flying sword that had formed in front of his chest howled forth as it flew out, striking towards the white-robed maiden. The golden flying sword carried a terrifying sword-intent that struck directly at the opponent's soul. This was the terrifying sword-intent which only Sword Immortals possessed.

"You are Adept Darknorth…Ji Ning!" The white-robed maiden called out in shock. Lotus-type techniques were fairly common, but upon seeing those seven hundred-plus flying swords? If she wasn't able to put two and two together and recognize Ning from this, it would have been bizarre.

Clang! In the face of the attack of the sword light from Ning's [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, the white-robed maiden hurriedly used all six short sticks to block.

BOOM!

The power of Ning's [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] was far greater than the Waterflame Lotus; the Waterflame Lotus was primarily meant to bind and grind an opponent, whereas the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] was a purely offensive technique. Ning was using nearly ninety percent of his spiritual energy on maintaining the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]. The white-robed maiden was knocked flying backwards, and two of the short sticks flew out of her hands. She was, however, blocked from behind by the Waterflame Lotus once more.

Whooosh.

The killing, grinding power of the Waterflame Lotus was constantly pressing down on the white-robed maiden's body.

"Damn you." The white-robed maiden gritted her teeth, staring viciously at Ning. "Ji Ning, you are a piece of work."

She tossed out her talisman.

Rumble! An invisible power instantly covered her body, and then she was teleported away.

"How powerful." Ning waved his hand, collecting the talisman. "A random person I encountered was already this powerful…fortunately, I was able to use the Waterflame Lotus to bind her. Otherwise, she would've fled upon realizing she couldn't beat me."

The intelligence reports of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain stated quite clearly that Ji Ning's true body was skilled in close combat. Next was his flying swords formation, which was significantly weaker than Ji Ning's close combat ability.

The white-robed woman had realized that Ning was capable of using just his sword formation to completely suppress her, and would most likely be able to kill her in just ten exchanges or so! If he closed to engage in close quarters combat…he might be able to kill her in just one or two exchanges. With the Waterflame Lotus binding her and preventing her from fleeing, she had no choice but to admit defeat. That way, she would at least stay alive.

Ning carefully advanced, continuing to be very cautious for fear of suffering another group attack. There was a reason why his power was such that the Heavenly Treasures Mountain ranked him as being within the top hundred.

After all, Ning's true body relied on his divine abilities to do battle, and had been able to stay alive against the assault of a Whitebone Immortal Slaying Needle! This was enough to ensure that the Heavenly Treasures Mountain viewed Ning's true body as definitely being extremely formidable in close combat.

One against one…

It was true that within the Diagram, Ning was indeed one of the supreme fighters.

Against ordinary foes, the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] and the Waterflame Lotus was already enough to suppress them.

Against powerful foes, he would have to use both the Waterflame Lotus and close quarters combat.

But of course…that was in one-on-one fights.

"All of the fairly famous individuals are beginning to slowly display their might." The Xia Emperor accompanied the eight Pure Yang True Immortals in drinking as he watched.

Previously, Xiamang Zishan, Cangwu Jiu, and the others had all suffered quite a bit. However, they quickly hid their tracks and began to act with great caution. Whether through killing their foes or forcing them to voluntarily give up, they began to slowly accumulate more and more talismans. Still…things were quite early. Thus, with each kill, they only acquired one or two talismans.

"That dirty-looking maiden, she's quite formidable." The Xia Emperor's eyes lit up.

The Xia Emperor suddenly looked towards the nearby Lu Dongbin. Lu Dongbin had left behind many legacies throughout the Three Realms, and liked to take on new disciples. Amongst Pure Yang True Immortals, he was one of the most powerful; naturally, he had quite an astute gaze. The Xia Emperor couldn't help but laugh and say, "Lu Dongbin, which of these youths do you view as having the most luck surrounding them?"

"The most luck?" Lu Dongbin half-lay there, sipping his wine. He glanced out of the corner of his eyes at the Diagram, then shook his head and said, "How can you tell just by looking? Luck is unfathomable and ever-changing to begin with…even someone with tremendous luck can still be killed."

The Xia Emperor felt resigned. Of course he knew that lucky individuals could be killed as well. Those blessed by luck would just have more lucky encounters and have the assistance of the heavens. They could still, however, be killed! In fact, the person who killed them might even be able to steal their luck…but it was also possible that their own luck would lessen as a result.

For example, let's say an individual was the only child of a major power. Killing this person would cause the major power to feel great hatred, and perhaps even personally intervene; in this case, one's luck would naturally lessen.

For another example, if one person had a tremendous stroke of fortune and acquired a huge treasure repository, this person could be said to have had great luck. But if he were to killed by another and his treasure repository stolen, then his luck would now be the killer's.

Thus…

Luck was something which could neither be seen or felt; it could only be hypothesized based on numerous factors. This required astute judgment. Clearly, Lu Dongbin was a person with incredibly astute judgment.

"You alcoholic! I asked you to tell me, but you refused to." The Xia Emperor felt resigned. "Of course I know that lucky individuals can be killed, but lucky individuals will still have a higher chance of becoming powerful figures of the Three Realms, right?"

"But what if I told you, then you picked that person?" Lu Dongbin glanced sideways at him. "Pick your own. I told you that I'll definitely let you and your Daofather pick first. I'll pick from whoever is left."

The Xia Emperor felt resigned. What could he do against such a shameless person?

Within the Diagram. More than five days had passed. Ning was currently resting within a cavern estate. There was a cold pool of water here. When washing his face in it, Ning felt incomparably refreshed.

"Five days. I've acquired a total of fifty talismans," Ning mused to himself. "However…at the beginning, there will be many Wanxiang Adepts within the Diagram, and I would often encounter them. Later on, however, the number will begin to drop and it will be more rare to run into someone. In addition, those who survive until the end will be extremely powerful and hard to deal with."

"Still, there's a benefit to that as well; those who survive for longer will also have more talismans on them." Ning's eyes suddenly flickered.

Rumble…

A vague, trembling ripple was sweeping towards him from far away.

"A battle? And it seems it's quite a big one." Ning immediately transformed into a streak of light, leaving the cavern and carefully moving closer.

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Chapter 6- Junior Apprentice-Brother Ji Ning

The Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers was perpetually cast in the glow of moonlight.

Ji Ning passed through a mountain forest, silently and soundlessly arriving at the mountain's peak. He hid there within the grass, staring into the distance.

Off in the distance, within a gorge, there was a mirror-like lake. A massive battle was underway at the lake; three individuals were attacking a single woman.

The three individuals included a black-robed man who hovered in midair, an enormous black Flood Dragon coming into being in front of him. The black Flood Dragon appeared to be real, and its aura was powerful. It was savagely attacking the woman.

The second of the three attackers was a silver-haired woman. The silver-haired woman, every so often, would open her mouth, and with a whooooosh, an incomparably terrifying gust of balewind would be unleashed. It was as though countless sharp swords were flying out, slicing away at even the ground itself. The balewind, carrying a glowing azure light, was savagely attacking the woman as well.

The last attacker was a silver-robed youth with a cold, arrogant face. He pointed from far away into the air, and as he did, an enormous greatsword that was three hundred meters long would appear, chopping down repeatedly as its tip pierced towards the woman!

The person the three were attacking…

Was an absolutely peerless black-robed beauty. Around her, there was a pair of enormous phoenixes, one of fire and one of ice, which swirled around her, struggling to defend. However, under the triple attack, the woman was clearly finding it quite hard to endure. In addition, the coiling black dragon continually attacked her as well, giving her no way to flee or escape.

"Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei!" Ning stared. The woman being attacked was, amazingly, Yu Wei. The black-robed man's eyes had grown bloodshot, and it seemed as though the black Flood Dragon was about to change…

"HOLD!" A sudden, explosive roar exploded from Ning's lips.

Swoosh!

Ning immediately utilized the [Windwing Evasion, seeming to have transformed into a giant Roc as he howled through the air towards them.

Yu Wei had felt that she had become trapped in a dire situation. The three in front of her were all extraordinarily strong, especially the one with the giant black dragon. The black Flood Dragon was the personification of a magic treasure formation that was absolutely massive. Its coiling body completely surrounded her.

As for the silver-haired woman, her balewind technique was extremely amazing as well. When the gust of balewind blew out, when one tried to dodge, it felt as though one was moving against the wind. The technique lowered her speed ridiculously.

"It's only the sixth day, but I'm already in grave danger." Yu Wei gritted her teeth.

Rumble…

Thirty-six Rahu Godneedles formed into an enormous phoenix of ice, whose entire body seemed to be produced from arcane ice that was incomparably hard. It blocked the balewind repeatedly, as well as the strikes from the Flood Dragon and the massive sword. This was the absolute best defensive technique Yu Wei had available to her.

As for the other thirty-six Rahu Godneedles, they were formed into the enormous phoenix of fire. Its flames blazed ferociously, and it clashed repeatedly against the balewind, causing even the balewind to crumble, while at other times forcing the Flood Dragon or the massive sword back. But it could only knock back one thing at a time.

"Senior apprentice-brother, senior apprentice-sister, this woman's power is formidable; she certainly must have many talismans on her. She might have over a hundred! I'll tie her down; you two, kill her at one blow." The black-haired man sent a mental message to the other two. They were from the same school, and although he seemed old, he was actually the junior disciple.

"Alright.

"It'll be up to you, junior apprentice-brother." The silver-haired woman and the silver-robed youth both responded.

The black-robed man immediately gritted his teeth as his eyes began to turn bloodshot. His elemental ki wildly exploded forth, and the enormous black Flood Dragon let out a furious howl as its head actually split into two enormous heads. The two-headed black Flood Dragon's aura instantly expanded greatly, and it threw itself towards the phoenix of ice. So long as it was able to break through the phoenix of ice, Yu Wei wouldn't have anything to rely on and would be finished.

"Damn." Yu Wei gritted her white teeth, revealing a look of savagery as well.

But right at this moment…

"HOLD!" A furious roar, filled without elemental ki, instantly exploded forth into the area.

The silver-haired woman, the silver-robed man, and the black-robed man all turned to look. They saw a black-robed youth who was howling through the air as he flew towards them like a giant Roc.

Yu Wei turned her head and saw the black-robed youth flying towards them from afar. Upon seeing his face…her heart suddenly shook.

"Ji Ning!" Yu Wei couldn't believe it. In the moment that she had been trapped in a dire situation, her junior apprentice-brother had actually arrived as well.

"Can this be fate?" Yu Wei's heart instantly was thrown into a rather chaotic state.

Actually, a long time ago, shortly after Ning had joined the Black-White College, Yu Wei had investigated Ning's background and learned of his past…she, too, had a tragic past, and her parents had both passed away as well.

This was why Yu Wei had, from the very beginning, felt well-disposed towards Ning. When Ning had instantly shocked everyone in such a splendid manner during the Dao Debates, she liked him even more. In the end, after she personally intervened and defeated Ning, she even teased him a little bit.

Given her normal, icy disposition, why would she so casually tease one of her junior apprentice-brothers like that?

She had always been quietly watching Ning…

However, Ning ended up being together with Ninelotus. This tied Yu Wei's heart up in knots, but all she could do we silently bless them and hide everything she felt in her heart.

Afterwards, when she learned that Ning had defeated Daoist Snowplume, she had an excuse to go seek him out alongside Mu Northson and Adept Vastriver. In fact, she had even been preparing to stay for the next two or three years at Serpentwing Lake, but who would've thought that Youngflame Nong would invite them to the Witchriver Immortal Estate?

That journey to the Witchriver Immortal Estate! In the end, it caused Ninelotus and Ning to part ways for good.

Ninelotus had chosen to leave. As she had, in that moment, Yu Wei had a sudden impulse…she wanted to say to Ning, 'I will go with you!' But she wasn't in a position to say such a thing; she was not Ning's Dao-companion. In addition, her power was truly not enough to help Ning at all in facing the disaster that was unfolding for him. The only thing she could do was wrack her brains to come up with strategies for him!

After she and Ning separated, she watched as he wandered by himself. She could only repress all her feelings once more, and once more silently bless him.

Who would have imagined…

Ning was even more brilliant than she had thought he would be. His Primaltwin had actually slain Immortal Floatcloud, causing the Youngflame clan to be unable to do anything to him. In addition, Ning was participating in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny as well! This caused a surge of delight in Yu Wei's heart. Only…after entering the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, they had all been separated.

"The world of the Diagram is enormous, and there are more than a hundred thousand people present. On just the sixth day, and coincidentally just as I found myself in a dire situation, Ji Ning arrived? Can this be fate? Are the hands of fate at work here?" Yu Wei was shocked, delighted, and stunned.

The distant Ning howled through the air like a streak of lightning. The silver-robed youth, the silver-haired woman, and the black-robed man were all enraged.

"Junior apprentice-sister, stop him," the silver-robed youth sent mentally.

"Right."

The silver-haired maiden immediately stared at the distant Ning. Suddenly, she opened her mouth. Whooooooosh. The balewind came out, filling the skies with its azure light. If one looked carefully, one would be able to see that in reality, this was a tempest formed from countless azure needles, and thus had even more penetrative power than ordinary wind attacks.

Whoooooosh.

A beautiful Waterflame Lotus appeared, swiveling around Ning. The enormous Waterflame Lotus was incomparably resilient, and the layers of leaves actually completely blocked the balewind. After all, Ning was using earthfire and dire-ice of the first grade to serve as his foundation of this technique, then activating the fire and water of the natural world to condense around it.

In terms of technique quality, Ning was a hair above his opponent; this was a self-created technique, after all.

In addition, he had both earthfire and dire-ice, whereas this woman only had balewind.

Although the power of her balewind was truly astonishing, it was still blocked by the Waterflame Lotus.

"F*ck off!" The approaching Ning's body suddenly expanded as he transformed into a 54 meter tall black-robed giant. The surface of his body flowed with electricity, and Ning's forehead suddenly split open as well, revealing a vertical eye.

Divine ability – [Divine Thunderbolt Eye]!

CRACK! A bolt of lightning thundered out from Ning's third eye, that vertical slit in his forehead. It was astonishingly fast, and it struck directly against the round umbrella which had suddenly appeared in the hands of that distant, silver-haired woman. [Pentabolt Vajra] and [Divine Thunderbolt Eye]; these two divine abilities synergized, causing the power of his thunder to vastly surpass that of ordinary divine abilities. This caused the silver-haired woman to be knocked flying back by the thunderbolt, and she threw up a mouthful of blood. In addition, this [Divine Thunderbolt Eye] attack also contained a divine will attack as well.

"Argh!!!" The silver-haired woman let out a miserable cry.

"Protect senior apprentice-sister!" The black-haired man and the silver-robed youth were both greatly shocked. They had thought that the balewind would be enough to block the youth for a period of time, but who would've imagined that the enemy would not only easily block it, but also injure their senior apprentice-sister with a bolt of lightning?

"Let's go." The silver-robed youth couldn't be bothered to deal with Yu Wei; the aura of this approaching black-robed youth who was protected by the Waterflame Lotus was simply too ferocious.

Rumble!

With but a thought, the silver-robed youth willed the surface of his massive, three hundred meter long greatsword to suddenly be covered with flowing runes. The power of his sword continuously rose and focused on the tip of the sword. This enormous sword pierced towards Ning, lightning-fast!

"You want to block me?" Ning surged forward like a rainbow streak of light, neither dodging nor moving away. The vertical eye in his forehead sent out two bolts of lightning in a row.

CRACK! CRACK!

One bolt of lightning struck towards the silver-robed youth, while the other struck towards the black-robed man.

The thunderbolts couldn't be casually blocked; both of them knew this very well. Thus, they all immediately used powerful techniques to block against it. Around the silver-robed youth, a chain link suddenly appeared. CRACK! The thunderbolt was blocked by the chain link, which was knocked flying back by the collision. However, the divine will attack within the thunderbolt was transmitted into the silver-robed youth's body, causing his face to change. However, he was able to withstand it.

As for the black-robed youth, he was protected by the black Flood Dragon, which withstood the lightning bolt. However, the divine will attack also penetrated invisibly into his body. His body suddenly swayed, and even the black Flood Dragon turned blurry for a moment. However, it quickly re-stabilized.

"Careful, his divine ability includes a divine will attack." Only now did the silver-haired woman, who had been knocked to the ground by the earlier attack, manage to send a frantic mental message to them.

The main reason was that the two were battling far too fast. Ning had immediately sent out three lightning bolts upon arriving, causing the heart of all three to be filled with amazement.

"[Soldiers of the Mind]!"

Immediately after having used a divine ability, Ning then revealed a true divine will attack; the [Soldiers of the Mind] he had acquired from the Witchriver Immortal Estate. This was an even more powerful technique than the Black-White College's [Soulslayer Art]! Although Ning had also spent some time on other divine will techniques, most of his time had been spent on this, [Soldiers of the Mind]!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Within Ning's sea of consciousness, his soul was seated in the lotus position, and a soldier's seal was hovering in his hand. When his divine will was summoned forth from this soldier's seal…it instantly transformed into invisible and untraceable sharp swords, warblades, and longspears. These spiritual weapons howled forth, striking towards the silver-robed youth, the black-robed man, and the silver-haired woman.

Imagine how fast divine will attacks were!

Sharp swords formed from divine will…they were incomparably sharp and stabbed right towards the soul!

Warblades formed from divine will…they carried an unstoppable might, hacking against the enemy soul with overwhelming brute force!

Longspears formed from divine will…they combined both of the advantages of the two other weapons, and were also savage in focusing their power at one point as they pierced straight towards the enemy!

Invisible, formless weapons that were created from divine will. The sharp swords, giant sabers, and longspears were savagely attacking the three!

Slash! Chop! Boom!

The souls of the three were immediately, violently assaulted by Ning's divine will technique.

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Chapter 7 – It Must Be Love

Ji Ning's soul was comparable to many Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals, and [Soldiers of the Mind] was even more formidable than the [Soulslayer Art] technique. The power of his assault…it was so great that both the black-robed man and the silver-haired woman felt their souls rumble as they were sent into a dazed state. Only the silver-robed youth was dazed momentarily before immediately regaining consciousness.

"Not good." The silver-robed youth was shocked. "Even I passed out for a moment; how can junior apprentice-brother and junior apprentice-sister withstand that?"

However, at this moment, he could not do anything for the two of them, because Ning was pouncing towards him.

"Who on earth is this person? He is so powerful that just by using a divine will attack, he was able to set me back?" The silver-robed youth's heart clenched, and he didn't dare to be the least bit overconfident. He hadn't been able to recognize Ning, who had only used a single lotus technique so far.

"Your divine will attacks are formidable, but I refuse to believe that you are that formidable in actual combat as well." A cold look flashed through the eyes of the silver-robed youth. "Die!"

BAM! The power of the enormous, three hundred meter long greatsword was now completely focused on the tip, where black and white light had joined together to form a strand of golden sword-light. The silver-robed youth had already poured all of his power into this attack. A powerful soul might be stem from a person's birth; although the black-haired youth that was pouncing towards him had a powerful soul, he didn't necessarily have a high level of insight into the Dao.

"Die!" The charging Ning showed no mercy at all. The layers of the Waterflame Lotus swiveling around him blocked the massive sword, which repeatedly hacked against it but was firmly stopped.

A cold light flashed through Ning's eyes.

Divine ability – [Starseizing Hand]!

CLANK! The Darknorth sword in Ning's hand instantly lit out a brilliant flash of sword-light, and with a massive boom, it collided against and actually knocked that enormous enemy sword flying. As for Ning, after the sword in his left hand knocked the massive sword flying, he immediately used the [Windwing Evasion] technique to arrive in front of the silver-robed youth.

The silver-robed youth was tremendously shocked. He couldn't believe that his most powerful technique had been knocked away by a single sword blow. He was one of the most elite of geniuses within his school! He no longer had the courage to fight against Ning, and he immediately produced dozens of talismans and threw them all away.

He had given up his talismans and was planning to flee.

It must be understood that the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers was a Pure Yang magic treasure; naturally, it had a soul as well. There was no way that Ning and the others could deceive the spirit of the Diagram as to how many talismans they had. They had to throw out all of their talismans in order to be teleported away.

Swish!

Ning's sword-light had already arrived in front of the silver-robed youth. Clang! The silver-robed youth used both his earthfire and his chains, striving to buy himself just a single moment of time.

BOOM!!!

Ning's sword-light was like an attack unleashed by one of those ancient, primordial Fiendgods. It possessed an utterly shocking power that shattered the earthfire and sent the chains flying. The body of the silver-robed youth, when struck, was instantly turned into pulp. Blood sprayed everywhere, along with chunks of flesh and bits of bone, but even as it sprayed everywhere, it was completely vaporized in midair by the terrifying sword-ki.

It was all too fast!

Although the silver-robed youth had already thrown away the talismans…there was an extremely short window of time between the talismans being thrown away and himself being teleported away. In a true, close quarters battle, that window of time was enough for Ning to attack ten more times with his sword!

Ning felt hatred for these three for daring to act against his senior apprentice-sister, and so he showed no mercy at all. In addition, the silver-robed youth truly was quite powerful; without using the [Starseizing Hand, Ning would only at most be able to seize an advantage; he wouldn't be able to cause the foe to completely collapse at all. He had to use his [Starseizing Hand, and use overwhelming raw power to deal with this foe!

BOOM!

BOOM!

The two enormous phoenixes of fire and ice struck against the bodies of the other two temporarily stunned Adepts. Although the stunning effect was only for a short moment, Yu Wei was a true expert as well; she naturally seized the chance to immediately change from defending to attacking as she sent her phoenix of fire and her phoenix of ice to separately attack the black-robed man and the silver-haired woman, instantly killing the two!

Yu Wei then turned her head, looking at the black-robed youth who was 54 meters tall, crackling with lightning, and who had a vertical eye-slit in his forehead. She was both excited and nervous.

"Senior apprentice-sister." Ning's third eye closed. The lightning around his body vanished. He returned to the size of a normal person.

"Junior apprentice-brother." Yu Wei spoke out as well, and her eyes glistened like jewels.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

"Those three are disciples of my Heavenly Silkworm Sect. That black-robed woman is almost finished; yet another is going to be a slain and vanquished corpse of my Heavenly Silkworm Sect." An extremely skinny and shriveled Celestial Immortal was laughing smugly right now. Normally, when in front of their own disciples, these individuals would maintain the majestic decorum expected of a Celestial Immortal. Here, however, in front of all of these other Celestial Immortals, they would revealed his true personality, acting with abandon. When it was time to be smug, they would be smug; when it was time to mock, they would mock.

"That black-robed maiden is quite formidable as well. Look at those two techniques of hers; one is a phoenix of fire, the other a phoenix of ice. As I see it, she has absolutely mastered two complete Dao-Paths." Next to the first Celestial Immortal was a laughing fat man whose robe was open, revealing his chest.

"Right. She has mastered two complete Dao-Paths. That's the only reason why she was able to hold off the attacks of three of my sect's disciples for a period of time," the skinny, shriveled Celestial Immortal said confidently.

"Do you know which school the black-robed maiden comes from?" The bare-chested fat Immortal asked.

"No idea." The wizened Celestial Immortal shook his head. "Who knows what minor sect she's from? Major sects naturally sent quite a few disciples, who would usually travel in pairs or trios."

The fat Immortal's eyes suddenly lit up. "Help has arrived."

The shriveled Celestial Immortal's eyes narrowed. He, too, saw that within the enormous Diagram, a black-robed youth had suddenly appeared to assist the black-robed maiden being attacked by those three Adepts of his.

The black-robed youth was ridiculously powerful. He instantly defeated the three, as easily though he were bursting through rotting wood, and in the end all three died.

"Hmph." The shriveled Celestial Immortal couldn't help but frown. He slammed his wineglass against the table, appearing to be quite vexed.

"Bahaha, didn't you say the black-robed maiden was going to die?" The chubby Celestial Immortal began to laugh loudly.

In truth, Celestial Immortals like them didn't care too much about the deaths of these geniuses; after all, geniuses came every three centuries. Their deaths were minor matters. However, when so many Celestial Immortals were gathered together, they naturally hoped that the disciples of their school would be outstanding and earn some face for them from their peers.

But of course…that was just a matter of face.

The thousand Celestial Immortals down below were chatting amongst themselves. Up high, the Xia Emperor and the other eight Pure Yang True Immortals were chatting as well.

"Look there!" Lu Dongbin's eyes suddenly lit up as he pointed towards a corner of the Diagram. "Look at the black-robed girl being attacked by those three. A black-robed youth appeared next to them. Look, quick! See that look in the black-robed girl's eyes? That look in her eyes that instantly appeared when she looked at the black-robed youth…bahaha, a gaze that is extremely complicated, as though long-suppressed emotions were instantly unleashed! Although it was only for an instant, I daresay that this black-robed woman must have fallen in love!"

"Fallen in love?" The Xia Emperor, the Bodhisattva of Great Strength, Sovereign Hao, the Immortal Elder of the Northlands…they all were completely speechless.

They had followed Lu Dongbin's pointing finger to watch, and they had been paying attention to Ning who had exploded with power. Who would've thought that Lu Dongbin, however, was paying attention to the look in Yu Wei's eyes?

"That gaze…ahaha…it was really…not only has this woman fallen in love, I daresay that she's never confessed it to this black-robed youth before." Lu Dongbin swept his gaze across the other True Immortals, then laughed smugly, "Any of you want to bet with me on this?"

The Xia Emperor and the others exchanged glances, all feeling quite resigned.

"Senior apprentice-brother Xiamang, that black-robed youth of yours is rather formidable," Emperor Hao congratulated.

The Xia Emperor laughed. "The black-robed youth is named Ji Ning. He numbers amongst the few dozen most famous figures participating in this Conclave of Immortal Destiny. His Primaltwin has even killed a Loose Immortal."

"Oh?" The True Immortals present all nodded, but to them, killing a Loose Immortal was an extremely minor matter. They naturally wouldn't pay too much attention to it. What they cared more about was if any of the many geniuses present at this Conclave would become one of the powerful experts of the Three Realms in the future. And if so…who would it be?

"One of the few dozen most famous? He lives up to the reputation." The Bodhisattva of Great Strength smiled and praised him.

They actually didn't feel that Ning was particularly outstanding; after all, in the past five days of the Conclave, quite a few members of the hundred thousand-plus competitors had revealed astonishing levels of power. They were all Wanxiang Adepts, but had been capable of exploding forth with power comparable to an ordinary Loose Immortal's…and in fact, there were two Wanxiang Adept monsters who had comprehended five complete Dao-Paths.

Comprehended five Dao-Paths? Even this wasn't enough to shock the Pure Yang True Immortals present.

This was because they felt that it wasn't too shocking for some peerless geniuses to have mastered five complete Dao-Paths after having spent three hundred years at the Wanxiang level, all for the purpose of surprising everyone at this Conclave.

Pure Yang True Immortals like them…they were major figures of the Three Realms, and so naturally their vision was quite broad. If one looked at the Three Realms as a whole, it was indeed not rare for competitors with five mastered Dao-Paths to appear at the Conclave.

"That little lass is quite interesting, quite interesting." Lu Dongbin was rather intrigued now, and he laughed in a self-congratulating manner, "Yep…that black-robed maiden's been hiding her feelings all along. I wonder when she will voice them?"

The nearby Xia Emperor and the others just pretended not to hear anything.

Everyone knew that what Lu Dongbin loved to do was play matchmaker. This was one of his favorite hobbies, and in fact, stories about him playing matchmaker were extremely common throughout the Three Realms. They could tell that Lu Dongbin was feeling the impulse to do so once more. He might add a bit of 'spice' into the relationship between the black-robed maiden and the black-robed youth.

Ninelotus sat in the lotus position behind the Dongyan Forefather. Her head had been raised this entire time as she stared at the Diagram. She was mainly paying attention to the six disciples sent by the Dongyan clan and the three from the Black-White College…but of course, she paid the most attention to Ji Ning!

"Not good. Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei is in danger." A look of worry appeared on Ninelotus' face as her hands clenched around her robes.

"Ji Ning. Ji Ning is nearby.. Ji Ning, hurry up and notice it, hurry!" Ninelotus hoped it would happen.

And indeed, just as she had hoped, Ning had sensed the ripples from the battle. He had immediately moved in that direction, and had even displayed an astonishing amount of power. All three died, and Ning and Yu Wei were reunited.

"Whew. The danger is past. Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei is safe." Ninelotus let out a sigh. "Now, senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei and Ji Ning can move together and support each other. It will be much safer for them."

Suddenly, Ninelotus' heart trembled.

It was only natural and normal for Ji Ning and Yu Wei to travel together; they were fellow disciples, after all. It was normal for them to support each other. But Ninelotus suddenly realized…Ji Ning and Yu Wei, a single man and an unmarried woman, would be together for most likely an entire year.

"A single man and an unmarried woman…experiencing life and death together…for nearly a year…" Ninelotus suddenly shook her head gently. "But I no longer have any right to think about such matters."

Love was a strange thing.

They had clearly already separated, but upon seeing Ji Ning with Yu Wei, she felt as though a stone had just hammered against her heart, causing ripples that would be difficult to calm down.

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Chapter 8 – The Grand Black Tortoise Divine Ability

Within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers.

"Junior apprentice-brother." Yu Wei's emotions and her excitement were all difficult to control right now.

"Senior apprentice-sister, your earlier battle caused quite a stir, and you fought for a long while. Others are definitely lying in wait in this area, and even more are probably on the way." Ning had no time to talk; with a wave of his hand, he collected the magic treasures and storage treasures of the silver-haired woman and the black-robed man. The talismans were located in the storage treasures; how could he not take them away?

Whoosh.

A ship appeared in front of Ning and Yu Wei. "Senior apprentice-sister, let's go." Ning pulled Yu Wei by the hand as he leaped into the ship. The two immediately entered it, and the ship transformed into a streak of light, quickly fleeing. As it fled, Ning spread out his divine sense to sweep the area…and, just as he had expected, quite a few people were present.

"Who was that black-robed youth? How could he be so powerful?"

"Given his power, he should be one of those who was ranked as one of the top hundred prior to the Conclave beginning. He seems rather similar to that Ji Ning, mentioned in the reports of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain. He uses twin swords, is very powerful in close combat, and is skilled in lotus techniques. Given the level of his power…it should probably be Ji Ning. However, Ji Ning is usually dressed in furs, whereas that youth was dressed in black robes. It seems that even Ji Ning doesn't dare to be too bold and brash."

"Right. Anyone would recognize him in furs. In black robes…one would have to carefully inspect him."

"The top hundred experts of the Conclave truly are formidable. In single combat in close quarters against this Ji Ning, when he activates all his divine abilities…he can probably kill me in just one exchange of blows."

"Gotta be careful."

All of them quickly and secretly departed. Ning had fled quite fast. In addition, without enough people joining forces, they didn't dare to try and antagonize Ning.

Whoosh.

The ship flew thousands of kilometers, then hide within a large mountain. Ning put away the flying treasure, then let out a sigh of relief alongside Yu Wei.

Ning said with a laugh, "Senior apprentice-sister, earlier when we were fighting, there were eight figures within ten kilometers who were watching us, and nearly two hundred people within a thousand kilometers were pressing near. In this Diagram, even if you get into a fight, you can't continue to fight for too long. Otherwise, the disturbance will definitely attract attention from others. You have to resolve any fights quickly."

"Of course I know that, but I was trapped by them and wasn't able to even flee," Yu Wei said helplessly. "I was just about to throw out my talismans and prepare to escape."

His senior apprentice-sister definitely was a supremely beautiful woman in terms of appearances. This look of helplessness on her face couldn't help but cause Ning's heart to tremble slightly, but then he quickly calmed himself.

"Senior apprentice-sister, earlier you used phoenixes of ice and fire," Ning said with a sighing laugh. "I have yet to congratulate you on mastering yet another complete Dao-Path."

Three years ago, she had already mastered the Dao of the Freeze, but that was but a single Dao-Path.

"You all call me the Rainbowflame Fairy, right?" Yu Wei laughed softly. "I was more talented in fire to begin with. Thanks to a stroke of luck, I first mastered the Dao of the Freeze. My Dao of the Inferno was just a small step behind that."

Ning nodded. He, too, felt as though he was about to make a breakthrough in the Dao of the Inferno…but he continued to be just a hair away from actually accomplishing it.

"Later on, I'll need to ask you to help guide me on the Dao of the Inferno, senior apprentice-sister," Ning said.

"A minor matter." Yu Wei naturally was happy to help teach him.

"Right, senior apprentice-sister. This is the storage treasure of the silver-haired woman. Help me bind it. I'll bind the other one's storage treasure. The talismans are all inside." Ning handed a bracelet to Yu Wei.

"You go ahead and slowly bind it yourself," Yu Wei said, looking at Ning. "If I bound it, you definitely wouldn't accept the talismans inside. Don't try to trick me."

Ning was flabbergasted. Yu Wei was truly quite meticiulous and intelligent. Ning felt that he was a smart man, but compared to her, he was still a bit inferior. For example, just now; all he had done was ask her to help bind the storage-type bracelet, and she had immediately been able to infer that in reality, he was giving the talismans within to her.

"You killed both of those two. The talismans belong to you. How about we split them?" Ning said.

"You saved my life, and when I killed them, they were in a dazed state because of you." Yu Wei shook her head. "Enough. In the future, we are going to continue to adventure in this Diagram. In the future, whoever makes the kill will get the items, but this time, since you saved my life, the talismans should be yours."

Ning had no choice but to nod.

Seeing how Ning was behaving, Yu Wei felt quite happy, and the corner of her lips couldn't help but curve upwards.

"Let's go. Senior apprentice-sister, you battled for a long time earlier; you need to first restore your elemental ki and also calm your mind." Ning immediately led Yu Wei to quickly find a cave to hide in.

Time flowed on. The days passed, one by one.

Together, Ji Ning and Yu Wei truly were much more formidable.

Yu Wei had mastered two complete Dao-Paths, and was able to combine fire and water together. Her phoenixes of ice and fire were indeed incredibly powerful, and in terms of defense alone, the ice phoenix was comparable to Ning's Waterflame Lotus! This was the reason why Yu Wei had been able to hold on for so long against the attacks of those three. In terms of offense, the fire phoenix was quite astonishing as well.

With each other's support, even if ten or so people attacked them at once, they would still have a chance at winning.

"Yu Wei truly is extraordinary; she has comprehended two entire Dao-Paths." Immortal Fivecraze was quite delighted with the performance of these two disciples of the Black-White College. He often bragged about them to the nearby members of other major powers of Stillwater Commandery. "Ji Ning is even more formidable! One of the 96 positions will definitely go to our Black-White College. And the eldest disciple of the third generation; little Sloppy has yet to show his power."

"Ji Ning is formidable, but I really don't see anything remarkable about that the Sloppy Daoist of your Black-White College." A white-haired Loose Immortal of the Skysplitter Sword Sect shook his head and sneered, clearly unhappy at how smug Immortal Fivecraze was acting.

"You are just jealous!" Immortal Fivecraze stared at him.

The Conclave had been going on for more than a month. The Sloppy Daoist was reclining lazily within a cave. Next to him was a pool of water that was both clear and refreshing.

"The first three months will be the craziest. I'll relax for three months. Those who survive to the end will all be formidable, and will definitely have many talismans on them. Fighting will only be fun by that point." The Sloppy Daoist just lay there, producing a large cooked rib and beginning to gnaw on it, covering his mouth in oil.

Suddenly…

Whoosh!

A wind blew past, and eight figures suddenly appeared at the entrance to the cave. One of the eight, a muscular man, said with a laugh, "Eldest apprentice-brother, let's take a break at this cave and bind the storage treasures we just acquired. I hope there are talismans inside—" But suddenly, the muscular man stared.

The other seven also stared, flabbergasted, at the sloppy, chubby man lying down in the cave and gnawing on a roast rib.

The world of the Diagram was clearly quite large; the chances of encountering someone in a cave they randomly selected was very low. For the Sloppy Daoist, despite having often hidden in this cave during the past month, this was his first time encountering someone at the entrance.

"If you always walk by the side of the river, eventually your shoes will get wet." The Sloppy Daoist resignedly stood up and muttered to himself, then said with a chortle, "Everyone, I'm resting here. Why don't you leave? Or perhaps I shall leave?"

"Little sloppy kid, are you playing dumb or actually dumb?" A youth with triangle pupils said coldly, "Be good and hand your talisman over and we can spare your life. Otherwise, don't blame me for showing no mercy."

"Nope." The Sloppy Daoist shook his head.

"Don't waste words with him. Attack!" the leader, a youth holding a feather fan, let out a cold laugh and then immediately waved his hand. Feathers instantly began to shoot out from the feather fan in his hands, and hundreds of feathers instantly formed into an enormous Immortal crane. The Immortal crane screeched as it sent its claws tearing towards the Sloppy Daoist, and the surrounding rocky walls of the cave were beginning to shatter from the force of the attack.

"Die." The muscular man let out an angry roar, then immediately expanded in size to thirty-six meters. Because they were in a cave, he had to squat down and lower his head. He also suddenly activated the [Three Heads, Six Arms] divine ability, and in each hand he wielded an enormous greataxe.

He transformed into a streak of lightning, charging forward.

Each of the eight released their own techniques.

Three were Fiendgod Body Refiners, while the others were Ki Refiners. Each had secret arts of their own, and the 'Immortal Crane of the Nine Heavens' technique of their leader, the fan-wielding youth, wasn't that much weaker than even the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]. However, although the technique was fine, the power a technique could actually unleash depended on the user. For example, when Ning used the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, it was even more powerful and dazzling than when the Thousand Swords Immortal had used it back when he himself had been at the peak Wanxiang level.

These eight all came from an extremely large clan from the Eastern Seas known as the 'Myriad Beasts School'. This was ranked as one of the most supreme of schools in the entire Grand Xia Dynasty, and it was ranked several tiers higher than the Black-White College. It had hundreds of Loose Immortals and Earth Immortals! Naturally, all eight were extremely powerful.

Rumble…

The battle began. Rocks began to fly everywhere, and the mountain peak itself began to crumble.

BOOM!

Within the crumbling mountain peak, the illusion of an enormous Turtle-Snake suddenly appeared. A powerful aura that filled the heavens swept out from it. A chubby youth with the eyes of a snake and whose skin was covered with tattoos that looked like the shell of a turtle was there…and with his bare hands, he smashed aside a giant, blood-red seal, then slapped a terrified white-robed youth into dust with a single palm blow. Next, his hand formed into a claw, striking forward like the beak of a crow and piercing directly through the head of one of the Fiendgod Refiner men. Then, with a swiping movement, he completely tore the Fiendgod Refiner's body apart.

Whoooooosh. The enormous illusion of the Turtle-Snake quickly ground apart the body of the Fiendgod Refiner, quickly transforming it into ash.

"Quick, run!"

"My lord…"

"How can he be this powerful?! The records of the Heavenly Treasures Mountain regarding the most powerful participants made no mention at all of this sloppy-looking fatty!"

The geniuses of the Myriad Beasts School had completely collapsed. They all threw our their talismans, but in total six of them still ended up being killed by the sloppy-looking fatty. Only two of them just barely managed to escape with their lives.

"Whew." The Sloppy Daoist stood there atop the destroyed mountain. Waving his hand, he collected up all the talismans and storage treasures. He was completely back to normal, and no longer seemed as terrifying as he had before.

"I didn't want to fight in the first three months, but they actually forced me to unleash my grand divine ability." The Sloppy Daoist shook his head. "The participants of the Conclave of Immortal Destiny truly are extraordinary. The attacks of just eight of them were enough to force me to use my grand divine ability. I imagine that many others are going to quickly arrived. I'd best leave."

Whoosh.

With a single step, the Sloppy Daoist transformed into a gust of wind and disappeared.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

The faces of the Xia Emperor, Lu Dongbin, the Immortal Elder of the Northlands, and the rest of the nine had all changed. Although it didn't appear as though they were paying much attention to the Diagram, since they were Pure Yang True Immortals, they actually saw everything which was going on within it.

"The Grand Black Tortoise divine ability."

"Grand Emperor Xuanwu!" 1

"He's actually a successor for Grand Emperor Xuanwu. I wonder if he is a personal apprentice or just an honorary apprentice."

They all had solemn looks on their faces now. Grand Emperor Xuanwu…he was one of the major powers of the Three Realms, and an extremely terrifying figure.

"The Grand Black Tortoise divine ability…it is definitely ranked as one of the top hundred divine ability of the countless divine abilities created since the universe was established." Lu Dongbing spoke with a serious look on his face. "I didn't imagine that here, at the Conclave of Immortal Destiny of your Grand Xia Empire, I'd be able to see one of the most supreme divine abilities of the Three Realms!"

1. As noted previously, Xuanwu, literally 'dark warrior', is both the name of an Immortal as well as the Black Tortoise of the Four Beasts. There are many legends regarding the both, and often the legends are linked, such as the Black Tortoise/Turtle-Snake originally being the guts and intestines of Xuanwu.

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Chapter 9 – Repeated Breakthroughs

The Xia Emperor, Sovereign Hao, and the rest of the nine Pure Yang True Immortals were all staring at the distant, massive Diagram which hung in the skies. They stared at that sloppy-looking, chubby youth. Without question, this divine technique, the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability, absolutely was not something that could be recorded down in a book. It had to be transmitted through very special methods, and it had to be Grand Emperor Xuanwu himself who did the transmitting!

"Someone who was approved of by Grand Emperor Xuanwu…he cannot be a simple figure." The Immortal Elder of the Northlands chortled. "Xiamang, who is this youth? Where is he from?"

The others all looked towards the Xia Emperor as well.

The Xia Emperor knew the details of every single one of the hundred thousand-plus attendees to this Conclave. Not trying to hide anything, he said, "This youth is a disciple of the Black-White College, which hails from the Stillwater Commandery of my Grand Xia Dynasty. His name is Zhang Qi, and his Daoist title is 'Threefat', but because he's always dressed so sloppily, there are very few people in the outside world who refer to him as Adept Threefat. The majority refer to him as the Sloppy Daoist."

"The Sloppy Daoist? His Daoist title is 'Threefat'? This young fellow is quite amusing." Lu Dongbin laughed. "He actually picked such a casual Daoist title. It seems as though this youth who Grand Emperor Xuanwu took a liking to really does have unusual points about him."

"Grand Emperor Xuanwu is so majestic, and yet he actually chose such a sloppy young fellow as his disciple."

"The Sloppy Daoist?"

They all memorized this name.

Even if this fat youth was currently nothing more than an honorary disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu, after he became a Celestial Immortal, he would most likely become a personal disciple! For him to have been taught the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability, even when he was so young and weak, was testament to how much Grand Emperor Xuanwu liked him. For a major power to care about him so much…his future would definitely be extraordinary."

Pure Yang True Immortals had incredibly good high standards. The number of Celestial Immortals that would arise from these hundred thousand-plus geniuses could be counted on one hand, and they actually didn't care about them too much. However, the Sloppy Daoist's status as the disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu was definitely enough to make them pay serious attention to him.

"The Grand Black Tortoise divine ability?" The Dongyan Forefather revealed a look of astonishment. "This, this Conclave actually has a disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu?"

"The Grand Black Tortoise divine ability!" A stunned look was on Patriarch Arcanum's face as well. "This sloppily-dressed youth…who is he?! Our Grand Xia world actually has someone capable of becoming a disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu?!"

The thousand Celestial Immortals had often journeyed to other worlds as well, and some had even gone to the Heaven Realm. Thus, they were fairly experienced. In addition, the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability was an extremely recognizable one; upon seeing the massive illusion of the Turtle-Snake, and upon seeing the turtle shell-like tattoos that had suddenly emerged on the Sloppy Daoist's skin, there was no question in their minds at all that this was the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability. More than 80% of the nearly one thousand Celestial Immortals present all recognized it.

And they were all amazed!

The Grand Black Tortoise divine ability…it meant that this person was the disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu! Grand Emperor Xuanwu was one of the hegemons of the entire Three Realms. He had been a hegemon ever since the Primordial Era, and was absolutely one of the most major of powers! Celestial Immortals like them dreamed about being able to become a personal disciple of such a major power…but alas, the vast majority of them would only be permitted to become honorary disciples at best.

There was a huge difference between honorary disciples and personal disciples. Personal disciples…to be one meant that the major power would use all of his effort in training you.

Honorary disciples, by contrast, were just honorary; you'd be qualified to go listen to the major power expound on the Dao, but it would be hard to even speak a single word to that major power in private!

Celestial Immortals were carefree Immortals who had escaped the restrictions of the Three Realms, and were able to dominate a local region. Major powers needed servants to take care of matters for them, which was why they give appropriate Celestial Immortals a status of being 'honorary disciples'.

But the Sloppy Daoist was different. He had been taught the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability when he was merely a Wanxiang Adept. His treatment was absolutely on par with a personal disciple's treatment! Even though he was currently just an honorary disciple, that was merely because he was currently too weak; after becoming a Celestial Immortal, he would be immediately promoted to personal disciple.

The plaza below.

"The Patriarch has ordered us to immediately investigate who that sloppy-looking fatty is." An azure Flood Dragon that had shrunken in size and was coiling in midair stretched out a claw, pointing towards a spot in the sky.

"We'll investigate right away."

"The Supreme One has ordered us to investigate that sloppy-looking fatty."

Celestial Immortals were on too high of a level, and so they knew very little about the geniuses in this Conclave of Immortal Destiny. The Sloppy Daoist, at least, was someone which almost none of them recognized. They didn't dare to spread out their coresense; after all, the Xia Emperor and eight other Pure Yang True Immortals were right next to him. All they could do was just to send orders to their subordinates.

More than half of the major powers of the 3600 commanderies and four seas immediately began to investigate.

Soon, they discovered…that this person was named Zhang Qi, his Daoist title was Threefat, and that most referred to him as the Sloppy Daoist. He was a disciple of the Black-White College of Stillwater Commandery!

"Stillwater Commandery…the Black-White College?"

"Black-White College?"

"A small school like that actually produced a disciple that Grand Emperor Xuanwu cares about?"

The Celestial Immortals located in the main hall of the Skylight Palace all quickly received this information. They were all completely puzzled…but in their hearts, they already viewed the Sloppy Daoist as someone with status equal to theirs. The mere fact that he was someone whom Grand Emperor Xuanwu cared about was more than enough for him to be treated as an equal.

The leader of the Black-White College delegation, Immortal Fivecrazed, couldn't help but laugh delightedly as he saw all this. "I always did say that little Sloppy is extremely formidable. I understood his Dao-heart long ago…and I've always said that not even the Earth Immortals or Loose Immortals of the Black-White College are comparable to him in terms of his Dao-heart. He truly is formidable! But what divine ability is that? Not even I have ever seen it. It seems fairly powerful though; little Sloppy must've had a very lucky encounter."

"Heh heh heh…given how formidable little Sloppy is, perhaps in this Conclave…he'll be accepted by one of the powerful Celestial Immortals or Pure Yang True Immortals of the Three Realms as a disciple." Immortal Fivecraze was daydreaming beautifully right now.

Time flowed on. More than a month had already passed.

The battles raging within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers were exceptionally agonizing, because everyone understood that they were all fighting over their Immortal destiny.

However, in the eyes of the exalted Xia Emperor and the other eight True Immortals, aside from the Sloppy Daoist, who had caused them to sigh in amazement…these other geniuses could at most cause their eyes to briefly light up. In addition, it was already quite rare for a disciple of a major power to appear in the Conclave of Immortal Destiny of a major world; they didn't believe a second would emerge!

Rumble….

Within the world of the Diagram. A waterfall cascaded down like a white torrent, smashing against a pool and spraying water everywhere.

Next to the pool, there was a violet-robed, thick-browed, large-eyed, massively built youth. He was seated in the lotus position. Not too far away from him another youth, also in the lotus position; this youth had a head of tousled, unruly hair, and looked almost like a barbarian. His gaze was like that of one of the eagles in the sky, filled with a savagery that could cause the heart to quiver.

"Xiamang Zishan, are you done rest? It's time for us to go. We don't have enough talismans yet!" 1

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" The wild-haired barbarian youth began to get angry. But right at this moment…

Arcane ripples of power suddenly began to descend around the massively built violet-robed youth. These were the ripples of the Dao. Water and mist began to swirl around him, and in the midst of the water and mist could be seen flashes of lightning.

"…the hell? You made a breakthrough, just like that?" The barbarian youth was speechless.

The violet-robed youth slowly opened his eyes. If the barbarian youth could be described as an eagle of the heavens, then this violet-robed youth was like a primordial behemoth of the group, filled with an absolutely dominating aura. In terms of dominating auras, even the father of Northmont Baiwei, 'Northmont Blacktiger', was a level inferior to him.

"Cangwu Jiu." 2 The azure-robed youth cracked a smile, revealing his white teeth. "I've mastered a fourth Dao-Path as well! I've caught up to you!"

"Before this, you and I were on par…and now, you punk, you are even more powerful than me?" Cangwu Jiu was amazed.

The two of them had run into each other shortly after entering this Diagram world. They had fought together, then realized neither could achieve victory of the other. Given that they had also grown up together in the imperial capital, and felt friendly towards each other to begin with…and that as soon as they had entered the Diagram world, they had both suffered repeated group attacks…they decided to join forces!

"You run too fast. If you focus on avoiding taking on my attacks head-on, there's nothing I can do to you either." A look of confidence was in Xiamang Zishan's eyes. "But if you actually fight against me head-on…you naturally are no longer my match. With four Dao-Paths which have been infused into my Grand Dao of Lightning…I imagine that in this entire Diagram world, if I said that I was number two, no one would dare claim themselves to be number one!"

"Don't go too crazy," Cangwu Jiu sneered. "And don't be smug. There are countless geniuses in the Diagram, and given how many times they are battling every day…these battles are tempering them and allowing them to improve at an astonishing rate. Quite a few people are most likely making breakthroughs!"

"Mm. That's something I do need to be careful about." Xiamang Zishan nodded. "I can't be too overconfident. My goal in this Conclave is to come out number one!"

Cangwu Jiu shook his head. "Let's hurry up and go."

Swoosh! Swoosh!

Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu both flew off.

The Sloppy Daoist was standing by the side of a lake. Underneath the light of the moon, it appeared illusory and dreamy. His eyes were closed. He had no idea that in the outside world, nine True Immortals and many Celestial Immortals were all focusing on him, and that he was the largest focal point for the entire Diagram right now.

"whew."

The Sloppy Daoist's body suddenly trembled slightly, and then a swirl of fire erupted in the surrounding area, billowing outwards. One circle of fire after another spread out, with the Sloppy Daoist at the center. The ripples of the Dao descended.

The Sloppy Daoist opened his eyes. "After training for all these years, and after fighting tens of times every day in the Diagram world…I've finally made a break through in the fourth month and mastered my third complete Dao-Path. What I need to do now is to fuse all three of these complete Daos into my Grand Dao of Taiji." 3

The Sloppy Daoist had also gained insight into a Grand Dao.

Ji Ning had gained insight into the Grand Dao of the Sword, while the Sloppy Daoist had embarked on the path of the Grand Dao of the Taiji.

After a few months, many of those who had been present in the Diagram had given up…and many of them had perished within it! But for the surviving geniuses? It was normally incredibly rare for them to be able to encounter geniuses on their same general level and fight with them…and now that they were doing so for tens of times or a even hundred times each day, many of them began to make sudden breakthroughs.

Many of them had been trapped at bottlenecks, and now, they were all making their breakthroughs.

The sixth month of the trials within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers.

Within a wilderness region. A black-robed youth and a black-robed woman were within the wild grass of this area.

Ning sat there in the lotus position, and not too far away was Yu Wei. Yu Wei was also seated in the lotus position, quietly looking at Ning. Earlier, Ning had said to her: "Senior apprentice-sister, I gained some insights in that previous battle. Help stand guard for me." And then, he had set down a simple vision-obscuring formation, then closed his eyes and entered a meditative state.

Yu Wei looked at Ning, whose eyes were still closed. She carefully looked at his eyes, his nose, his lips…she looked at him very carefully and very earnestly.

1. Zishan means 'Violet Mountain', which goes with his preference for violet clothes.

2. 'Jiu' means hawk, hence the description of him as looking like an eagle.

3. This is the same Taiji as the Taiji Diagram, aka the Yin-Yang diagram, or in 'Tai Chi' martial arts. The concept of the Taiji is one of the most fundamental ones in Daoism.

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Chapter 10 – The Most Powerful Two-Man Squad

Yu Wei rested her hands on her chin, just looking at Ji Ning. In fact, an unconscious smile even crept onto her face.

It was very quiet.

They were underneath the light of the moon. The only people present were herself and her junior apprentice-brother. She just gazed at her junior apprentice-brother…and everything seemed so perfect.

The plaza of the imperial citadel.

"Whaaaaaat?" Mu Northson stared at the image of Ji Ning and Yu Wei within the Diagram in the skies. Yu Wei sat there, resting her hands on her chin and staring intently at Ning. "Can it be that senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei has fallen for senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning? Good heavens!"

Little Qing, wrapped around Northson's arm, was staring intently as well.

Just from the look on Yu Wei's face, anyone with the slightest bit of intelligence would be able to guess that Yu Wei harbored feelings for Ji Ning.

"That little girl Yu Wei and Ji Ning…?" Immortal Fivecraze revealed a grin. As he saw it, since both Yu Wei and Ji Ning were peerless geniuses of the Black-White College, they were quite a match for each other.

"Look look, look look look, that expression on that little girl's face! I told you, I told you all! I told you that this little girl must be in love with that Ji Ning fellow." Lu Dongbin urgently pointed at a corner of the massive Diagram while saying to the nearby Xia Emperor, Sovereign Hao, and others, "I wanted to bet with you earlier, but none of you were willing."

"You are the Sage of Love, a legendary matchmaker, the Moon Elder…who would dare bet against you in such a matter?" A Pure Yang True Immortal dressed in black Daoist robes that had a blood-colored Taiji diagram embroidered onto them laughed. 1

"Truelord, I'm no sage of love; I don't even have a Dao-companion. I'm definitely not the Moon Elder either; the Celestial Court already has a designated Moon Elder," Lu Dongbin said hurriedly.

Buffoonery and jests; shamelessness and thick-skinnedness; a master of pretense.

In short, any place with Lu Dongbin in it would be a place of laughter. This was why Lu Dongbin had so many friends in the Three Realms. He was an incredibly good-natured fellow, had powerful backers supporting him, and was very strong in his own right. How could he not have countless friends?

Ninelotus, seated behind the Dongyan Forefather, tightly grasped at her robes as she stared at the massive Diagram. She chewed on her lips, a complicated look in her eyes. "Senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei…towards Ji Ning, you…"

In the past, she had only been a bit worried. Although over the past few months, Ji Ning and Yu Wei had grown fairly close as they had adventured together, Ninelotus had chalked that up to being because they were fellow disciples of the same school. But upon seeing that look…she had no more doubts at all!

"I've made my choice."

"No regrets."

Ninelotus bit her lips, lecturing herself mentally.

Yu Wei just gazed at Ning, completely absorbed in her own little world. She completely forgot that there even was an outside world.

After an indeterminable period of time, tendrils of flame began to emerge around Ning, which grew and expanded into an lotus flower that began to continuously expand, from a fist-sized lotus flower to an enormous flaming lotus that was many tens of meters long. Ning sat there in the very center of the lotus amidst the pistils as the ripples of the Dao descended.

"Eh?" Yu Wei suddenly came to her senses.

"Not good!" She suddenly felt shocked. "Those in the outside world can see everything that's going on within this Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers! Someone might've noticed me!"

She had only revealed her emotions and ceased disguising them when she had seen that Ning had been completely absorbed in meditating on the Dao. She had forgotten that others outside could see her! This caused Yu Wei to feel incredibly awkward and embarrassed.

"Senior apprentice-sister." Ning opened his eyes, then said with a laugh, "I've broken through the bottleneck. I've finally mastered the Dao of the Inferno."

Yu Wei hurriedly came back to her senses, then said happily, "That's wonderful. Junior apprentice-brother, you've already mastered the Dao of Rainwater. Now that you've mastered the Dao of the Inferno as well…with fire and water joining together and then infusing your Dao of the Sword, your power must have grown significantly."

"Yes." Ning nodded, filled with anticipation as well.

Two complete Dao-Paths. He had also reached the Grand Dao Domain in the Dao of the Sword. He now felt even more confident in his chances. Although some of the most supreme geniuses amongst these hundred thousand-plus competitors in the Conclave might have already started training in their own Grand Daos, some had just a basic grasp while others had just gotten to understand their own hearts. Only a very few would have reached the Grand Dao Domain like Ning.

"Junior apprentice-brother, you need to seize the chance to train in your [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens," Yu Wei immediately said. "You are only at the eleventh stage. There are many practitioners of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] in this Conclave, and most of them have reached the twelfth stage."

"Understood." Ning nodded. This was his weakness. In Swallow Mountain, countless years would pass before there would a genius capable of training in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, but in Stillwater Commandery, the Black-White College alone had quite a few. As for the participants in this Conclave, many of them trained in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]. To be at the eleventh stage of it was indeed a bit weak.

However, he had a powerful soul and was a Sword Immortal, and also had the [Starseizing Hand]. He didn't fear fighting against any of them.

Just half a month after Ning had mastered the Dao of the Inferno.

A massively built violet-robed youth and a barbarian youth were walking shoulder-to-shoulder amidst the mountain forests, sweeping out with their divine sense to a distance of ten kilometers.

"Cangwu Jiu, how many talismans do you have?" Xiamang Zishan asked.

"Just barely over a thousand. You?" Cangwu Jiu asked.

"You have more than a thousand already? I've killed even more people than you, but I only have 989!" Xiaman Zishan stared at him.

"That's because you are stupid. Will you necessarily acquire a lot of talismans just by killing a lot of people? Some people had many on them; some had less. It comes down to being a matter of judgment…and clearly, your judgment is vastly inferior to mine," Cangwu Jiu said disdainfully.

Xiamang Zishan shook his head. "You don't have THAT many more than me. Look at how smug you are acting! We've spent more than six months in the Diagram; more than half a year has passed. We need to speed it up and acquire at least 1300 each."

The Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers had a total of 109,362 competitors within it.

After a year, the eighty contestants with the most talismans would have passed the trials. Thus, so long as they acquired at least 1370 talismans, it was guaranteed that you would have passed. And given that some would have more and others less, while some of the losers would also have talismans…1300 was probably going to be enough.

"We have to aim for 1400! Only then can I be at ease," Cangwu Jiu said.

While chatting, the two continued to sweep their divine sense forward. Whoosh! They continued to advance rapidly forward.

"Eh?" Cangwu Jiu and Xiamang Zishan's eyes suddenly flickered. Swoosh! Swoosh! The two transformed into streaks of light, instantly charging forward by many kilometers. Many kilometers away, halfway up a tall mountain peak, there stood a black-robed man and a woman. It was Ning and Yu Wei.

Ning and Yu Wei both had powerful souls as well; when the enemy swept them with their divine sense, they both immediately noticed it. A moment later, two figures appeared in the distance.

"Them?" Ning and Yu Wei were both shocked. They immediately recognized the two, because these two were simply far too famous. And, more importantly, the two hadn't changed their clothes at all.

"Xiamang Zishan? Cangwu Jiu?" Ning's heart clenched. According to the reports from the Heavenly Treasures Mountain regarding the peerless geniuses participating in this Conclave, the number one ranked figure was Xiamang Zishan, while the number two was Cangwu Jiu!

Xiamang Zishan trained in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, and also trained in my divine abilities that were used only by the imperial Xiamang clan and were not taught to outsiders! His talent was absolutely top-notch as well, and the Grand Xia Emperor was quite pleased with him. Supposedly, he had long ago been guided by the Grand Xia Emperor into the tutelage of one of the experts of the Three Realms, and his power was immeasurable.

Cangu Jiu was one of the rare, peerless geniuses of the Cangwu clan. His age was comparable to Xiamang Zishan's, and ever since they had been young, they had been famous geniuses of the imperial capital. They had grown up together.

Because Xiamang Zishan was of the imperial clan, he was ranked as number one while Cangwu Jiu was forced to be ranked as number two. But no matter what…without question, these two were the two most famous participants in this Conclave!

"Given how famous they are, they assuredly have the power to back it up. Why have the two most famous figures joined forces?" Ning felt nervousness in his heart. If he encountered one of them, he would dare to fight…but he had Yu Wei with him as well, and she was a Ki Refiner. Although she had mastered two complete Daos, her power was still quite a bit lower than figures like Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu.

"Lu Dongbin, weren't you paying a great deal of attention to that little girl? This time, that little girl and Ji Ning have really run into trouble," the Immortal Elder of the Northlands called out with a chortle.

Lu Dongbin was watching. He said vexedly, "This really does seem to be trouble. Those two are named Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu, right? Their power can be considered to be in the absolute top tier of these hundred thousand-plus competitors. Even compared to the Sloppy Daoist, they would still probably be on par. You can't say for certain who is stronger until they actually fight, but…Ji Ning and the little girl are a bit too weak."

"Zishan is the most outstanding member in the junior generation of my Xiamang clan, and has a chance to rank in the top three this time." The Xia Emperor laughed as he spoke. It was rare for him to care about someone from the younger generation, but Xiamang Zishan was the one he liked the most.

"Senior apprentice-sister, Ji Ning." Ninelotus watched nervously. She knew how frightening Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu were. Earlier, when she had watched as Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu had been headed in the direction of Ning and Yu Wei, she had begun to feel nervous. And in the end…they really did encounter each other.

"I hope nothing bad happens." Ninelotus was extremely nervous.

Within the world of the Diagram.

The friends and family outside were worried, but there was nothing they could do. Ning and Yu Wei were now both very cautious as well.

"You are…Ji Ning?" Cangwu Jiu's hawk-like eyes stared at Ning, immediately recognizing him.

"He's Ji Ning? Doesn't Ji Ning dress in furs?" The nearby Xiamang Zishan said.

"I told you that you are an idiot, but you wouldn't listen. Can't you just change your damn robes?" Cangwu Jiu shook his head. "I acquired quite a few paintings of Ji Ning. I collected many paintings of all the geniuses. Just by looking at a single one, it can be hard to recognize the real person, which is why I had to view many of them."

"I have more than a hundred paintings of Ji Ning, so I recognized him at one glance," Cangwu Jiu said confidently.

Ning and Yu Wei exchanged a glance.

From the way the two were chatting to each other and from how calm they were, it was clear that they were very confident.

"Senior apprentice-sister, don't fight them head on. Use your phoenixes to attack them, while I'll tie them up for a while. You flee first, then I'll come afterwards," Ning sent. Yu Wei nodded as well. She knew that if it weren't for her, it would be much easier for Ning to flee, but with her here…although their attack power was greater, fleeing became trickier.

As Ning and Yu Wei were chatting mentally…

"Hand over your talismans, and I'll spare your lives!" Cangwu Jiu's voice suddenly turned sharp, and his mental message echoed in Ning and Yu Wei's minds. Cangwu Jiu charged forward, and suddenly in midair a massive black vulture that was was three hundred meters long suddenly appeared. The plumes of the black vulture glowed with an oily light, and its eyes seemed almost alive as it dove forward with a screech.

1. In Chinese Daoist religions, a minor divinity known as the 'Moon Elder' is responsible for marriages and matchmaking, much like Cupid is in Western mythologies.

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Chapter 11 – Ji Ning Battles Xiamang Zishan

"That's the Venomous Nethervulture secret art!" Ning immediately recognized the technique. Cangwu Jiu had become famous long ago, and this Venomous Nethervulture art was his signature technique. It was an enormous Venomous Nethervulture that was formed from many magic treasures in a formation. As for Cangwu Jiu himself, he was hidden within the grand Venomous Nethervulture. Once it failed, Cangwu Jiu would emerge from within the body of the Nethervulture and enter close combat!

Yu Wei pointed towards the distant. Whoosh! All 72 Rahu Godneedles instantly appeared in midair. Filled with elemental ki, they activated the natural energy of the world to form a pair of enormous phoenixes of fire and ice. The two phoenixes simultaneously howled through the air as they charged towards the giant black vulture.

"Shkreee!" The black vulture let out a venomous screech, then slashed downwards viciously with his claws.

The phoenix of ice and the phoenix of ice charged upwards, but after exchanging just two blows many cracks had already appeared on their bodies. Upon their third collision against the vulture, both phoenixes completely shattered, and the 72 Rahu Godneedles were immediately knocked flying back as well.

"Arise." Ning stood there, and around him manifested the Waterflame Lotus. The Waterflame Lotus surrounded him, the lotus leaves swaying gently as they continuously swiveled.

Boom…

The charging black vulture smashed directly against the Waterflame Lotus. There was an enormous collision sound, but although some of the leaves of the Waterflame Lotus shattered, new ones quickly emerged. Clearly, this technique was incomparably resilient. This caused the relaxing, spectating Xiamang Zishan to feel startled; this was rather beyond his expectations.

After six months of tempering and especially after having thoroughly mastered both the Dao of Rainwater and the Dao of the Inferno, Ning had further perfected his Waterflame Lotus, as his powers were now in perfect equilibrium, allowing the technique to clearly grow more formidable. In addition, this was a technique which used earthfire and dire-ice of the first grade as its base; how could it be so easily defeated?

"Quick, leave." Ning sent mentally.

Swoosh! Yu Wei transformed into a streak of light, immediately planning to fly away.

"Shkreee!" The venomous black vulture suddenly opened its mouth, and a person emerged from within it. It was Cangwu Jiu. Cangwu Jiu was wielding a scimitar in his hand, and as he flew out, his body suddenly exploded in size to become sixty meters tall. His right arm transformed into a golden color, and with a single flash, he caught up to the location in front of Yu Wei, frightening her into hurriedly retreating.

"Go!" Ning suddenly manifested more than seven hundred flying swords around him. A golden flying sword appeared in front of him, then shot out with a bang.

Boom! The power of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] caused even Cangwu Jiu's body to tremble for a moment, but in the next moment, the golden right arm of Cangwu Jiu brandished that scimitar and chopped apart the flying sword of golden light. By this time, Yu Wei had fled back to the Waterflame Lotus.

"He is too fast. I'm not able to escape," Yu Wei sent frantically.

Ning understood as well. Forget about Yu Wei; even he himself wasn't confident in being able to escape from the attacks of Cangwu Jiu. Cangwu Jiu's strongest point was his speed to begin with.

"Then I'll trap him!" Ning sent. "Senior apprentice-sister, you and I shall first block him off together!"

Swish! Swish! Swish! One golden flying sword after another, formed from the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, flew out and attacked. As for Yu Wei, the 72 Rahu Godneedles in front of her flew out once more.

The [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, the phoenix of ice, and the phoenix of fire simultaneously attacked. Cangwu Jiu, seeing everything headed his way as well as that enormous Waterflame Lotus, couldn't help but frown. He mentally barked, "Xiamang Zishan, why aren't you helping out yet?!"

There was no way Cangwu Jiu could dominate Ning and Yu Wei by himself, after they joined forces.

"It's just two people. I thought you could handle it by yourself." Xiamang Zishan laughed loudly in response. "Cangwu Jiu, remember, don't let these two escape. You are most skilled in pursuing and trapping enemies."

"Don't worry about that!" Cangwu Jiu stood there in midair, pointing towards the distance.

Instantly, a fierce gale arose in the surrounding area, howling as it spun into a tornado. The spinning tornado covered the surrounding area, stretching several kilometers and completely trapping Ning and Yu Wei within it.

"I'll use the Qian-Heaven Soulwind to trap them, the Venomous Nethervulture to support it, and I'll personally be prepared to attack at any time," Cangwu Jiu sent mentally. "Under these three techniques…there's no way they'll escape. As for fighting them head on? I'll leave that to you."

"Hahaha…"

Xiamang Zishan laughed loudly.

Boom!

His footsteps suddenly began to cause the mountains to tremble as he immediately transformed into a sixty meter tall giant, and his entire body began to radiate with a violet-colored lightning. The violet-colored lightning even began to appear in the surrounding area, and an enormous black metal staff appeared in his hands. Wielding the black metal staff, he charged into the heart of the giant tornado towards the Waterflame Lotus.

Bang!!! He unleashed a single sweeping smash from the black metal staff, but the power of it was so great it seemed capable of reversing the course of rivers. Many of the leaves of the Waterflame Lotus were completely smashed apart into two pieces.

"Such power." Ning was shocked. Why was the man even more powerful than he had predicted? In the Heavenly Treasures Mountains' reports, it didn't seem as though Xiamang Zishan was quite this terrifying. Ning's Waterflame Lotus wasn't even able to withstand a single blow from this man.

"Ji Ning, right? Come!" Xiamang Zishan laughed loudly, possessing the aura of a dominating mountain that would crush and destroy anything before it.

Ji Ning suddenly took a step forward as well. Boom! He transformed into a 54 meter tall giant, and lightning crackled around his body as well. In his hands, two Darknorth swords appeared. He charged forward, and as he did a third eye appeared in the middle of his forehead. A succession of lightning bolts slammed out towards the distant Xiamang Zishan…who actually didn't dodge at all!

The violet lightning crackling around his body was enough to easily deflect Ning's thunderbolt strikes. As for the divine will component to the attack? He paid even less attention to that.

"[Soldiers of the Mind]."

An invisible, formless surge of divine will shot out, forming into sharp swords, warblades, and longspears. The weapons howled as they flew towards Xiamang Zishan's sea of consciousness, frantically chopping and stabbing at it.

Xiamang Zishan paused momentarily, but he then quickly regained control over himself. The savagery in his eyes only grew stronger. "So you have some ability after all!"

"You live up to your reputation as the number one expert in the Heavenly Treasures Mountain's intelligence report." The enormous Ning charged forward, twin swords in his hands and absolute confidence in his eyes.

"Hahaha…" Xiamang Zishan twirled his black metal staff, his aura of power filling the heavens. Even before his breakthrough, he had been ranked by the Heavenly Treasures Mountain as the number one figure in this crowded. Now that he had made a breakthrough, Xiamang Zishan personally believed that he had no equals left. His goal in this Conclave was to become the number one champion!

The two instantly collided against each other!

A dazzling sword-light filled the skies!

A massive staff shattered apart the Waterflame Lotus with the force of a flood!

BOOM!!!!

Ning took three steps back.

Xiamang Zishan took three steps back as well. The surrounding mountain had begun to crumble, and even the mountain peak was trembling, on the verge of collapse.

"What?!" Cangwu Jiu, in midair, was astonished. "He blocked that madman Xiamang Zishan? This Ji Ning has incredibly terrifying close combat power."

"What a fellow. You actually managed to receive the third stance of my self-created Qiankun Staff of Force! Have a test of the fourth stance I just created! This is a stance which I created by fusing four complete Dao-Paths into my Grand Dao of Lightning!" Xiamang Zishan was clearly growing even more berserk as he charged towards Ning once more, and the staff in his hands verily surged with flows of violet lightning.

As his staff smashed down, it seemed to tear apart the world itself.

Ning stepped forward to receive the blow, the Darknorth swords in his hands transforming into dazzling streaks of sword-light as they blocked the terrifying staff.

BOOM!!!!

A heavy collision.

Xiamang Zishan didn't even take a single step back, but Ning was actually forced backwards until his back slammed into the mountain wall behind him. The mountain peak, already trembling and unstable, suddenly began to collapse.

"How can this be?!" Ning's face was completely ashen. In his very first clash against Xiamang Zishan, he had already executed the [Starseizing Hand]. In the first exchange, he had barely managed to fight the man to a standstill, but now that this man had used an even more powerful technique, Ning was now in a position of absolute inferiority.

"His staff techniques are more powerful than my sword techniques." Ning understood the issue. The difference between the two in terms of the Dao was too great. In addition, the enemy had reached the twelfth level of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, which was more than Ning!

This opponent was of the imperial Xiamang clan. Although the divine abilities he trained in couldn't compare to Ning's [Starseizing Hand, they were still some of the better divine abilities of the Three Realms, and the difference wasn't too staggeringly great.

Rumble…

The mountain peak collapsed, sending rocks flying everywhere.

Ji Ning and Xiamang Zishan stared at each other, completely ignoring the flying rubble. The flying rubble couldn't even strike them; as soon as they came near, the divine power covering their bodies would instantly smash them apart.

"[Three Heads, Six Arms!]" Ning's body suddenly swayed as two new heads and four new arms emerged.

"Haha, me too!" Xiamang Zishan's body swayed as well, and he too used the [Three Heads, Six Arms] technique. He was now wielding a total of three giant black metal staffs.

"Come." Ning charged forward, displaying his Windwing Evasion, moving as unpredictably as a ghost as he moved to engage Xiamang Zishan.

Hahaha…." Xiamang Zishan continued to fight him head-on, charging straight for him.

Both of them were using [Three Heads, Six Arms]! Six swords, fighting against three black metal staffs!

Sword-light flowed through the air like streams of running water, incomparably beautiful. A flood of staff-blows filled the skies like bolts of thunder. Ning no longer fought head on; in the past, when he relied on the [Starseizing Hand, he was able to brute-force everything, but upon meeting Xiamang Zishan…he began to instead turn to using the nimbleness inherent to swords, as well as the Windwing Evasion technique. Although with each exchange of blows, Ning was knocked backwards, he wasn't sent completely flying like earlier.

"I'm going to hit! Hit! Hit hit hit you!!!" Xiamang Zishan was incomparably berserk as his three black metal staffs wildly smashed everywhere.

Ning's six swords were like an unbroken, everflowing stream of water, blocking and shunting the power of the enemy attacks to the side each time. Every so often, he would even be able to deliver a counterblow with his sword as well.

However, Ning could taste the blood in his mouth. "I can't continue like this. I have to rescue senior apprentice-sister."

"[Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]!"

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Instantly, a golden sword coalesced before him, then howled through the air and shot towards Cangwu Jiu. Ning sent frantically, "Senior apprentice-sister, hurry up and leave."

BANG! With a powerful staff blow, Xiamang Zishan smashed Ning down into the shattered stones. He roared angrily, "Punk, don't get distracted. If you get distracted, you'll die!"

The fight between Xiamang Zishan and Ji Ning had long ago attracted the attention of almost everyone, from the Pure Yang True Immortals and Celestial Immortals to the people on the plaza below the Skylight Palace.

"Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu. The Heavenly Treasures Mountain reported these two as number one and number two."

"Ji Ning is so formidable; he was actually able to tie down Cangwu Jiu."

"He's now fighting against Xiamang Zishan."

"Xiamang Zishan is so powerful. Ji Ning has actually been able to exchange more than a hundred rounds of attacks with him?" The various delegates from the 3600 and 4 great seas all felt their hearts clench. Many of them were Loose Immortals or Earth Immortals; naturally, they could tell how formidable and fierce Xiamang Zishan's staff technique was.

This was a staff technique that surpassed the techniques of many Loose Immortals! In addition, Xiamang Zishan's divine body and divine abilities were clearly incredibly powerful as well. He was an absolutely dominating and irresistible force.

But Ji Ning, a young fellow who had only trained for thirty or so years, was actually able to withstand the attacks. Although he was in a position of inferiority, he was able to rely on the nimbleness of his sword arts to deflect the attacks, and tie down his opponent!

But upon seeing Ji Ning be distracted as he controlled the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] to tie down Cangwu Jiu, resulting in Xiamang Zishan heavily injuring him and sending him flying into the rubble, many people instantly felt their hearts clench for Ning.

"Ji Ning is actually allowing himself to be distracted in a life-and-death battle? His opponent is Xiamang Zishan!"

"I hope he doesn't end up losing his own life for the sake of saving his female companion."

Many of the people in the plaza of the imperial citadel were discussing the situation amongst themselves.

Mu Northson, Little Qing, the Whitewater Hound, Immortal Fivecraze, Northmont Baiwei, and Ninelotus had begun to feel nervous and worried long ago. But there was nothing they could do; they couldn't go inside. No one could help Ji Ning. They could just watch as the scene played out before them.

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Chapter 12 – The Sound of the Flute in the Mountain Cave

Yu Wei, hidden within the Waterflame Lotus while controlling her phoenixes of fire and ice, watched as the three-headed, six-armed Ji Ning battled with full force against Xiamang Zishan, then diverted part of his attention to use his sword formation against Cangwu Jiu. This caused the eyes of Yu Wei, who was only controlling her phoenixes to protect herself, to instantly turn red.

How long had it been? It had already been six months. During the past six months, she and Ning had adventured together through the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers. They had fought nearly a hundred times on every single day; sometimes, others fled, while other times, it was her and Ning who fled!

Ning was more powerful than her, and was a Fiendgod Body Refiner as well; each time they were in danger, it had always been Ning who had charged forward to block the enemy from pursuing. Although this time there were only two enemies fighting them, compared to the previous dangers they had undergone, this was the most dangerous one of them all!

"Senior apprentice-sister, hurry up and leave!" Ning's voice echoed out in Yu Wei's mind.

"He's telling me to leave again. To leave again. Why am I always a burden to him?" Yu Wei ground her teeth, tears flashing through her eyes. She sent back, "Junior apprentice-brother, don't worry about me. I'm not strong enough to continue. I'll give up. I'm going to leave this Diagram. In the future, you'll have to rely on yourself."

With her slowing him down, Ji Ning would definitely find things easier. Given his power, there was no need at all for him to go fight anyone head-on if he didn't have to.

Whoosh…

In front of Yu Wei, many talismans suddenly appeared, and they scattered out in the area around her.

She truly didn't want to accept this.

It had only been six months.

She truly wanted to accompany Ji Ning in continuing to journey through the world of the Diagram until the year was over.

"Give up the talismans and I'll spare your life." Cangwu Jiu, in midair, revealed a smile. But suddenly…his smile froze.

This was because Yu Wei, who had just thrown out all her talismans…actually grabbed a handful back. Then, with a wave of her hand, she actually collected all of them once more.

"Are you looking to die?!" Cangwu Jiu, who felt as though he had just been played for a fool, was instantly enraged. He no longer waited there in midair; he immediately transformed into a streak of light and charged downwards.

Yu Wei, who had just taken back her talismans, now had a deep, dark, dangerous look in her eyes. She stared at the charging Cangwu Jiu, then gently pointed a single finger towards him. Instantly, the 72 Rahu Godneedles separated into two groups which undulated in the air.

36 of the Rahu Godneedles, summoning the power of the natural world, formed into a single, enormous black phoenix. This phoenix was completely black, and the tail-feathers of the phoenix blazed with black flames.

As for the other 36 Rahu Godneedles, they transformed into an enormous white phoenix which was completely pristine and pure, emanating an almost holy gaze. Lines of glowing white light could be seen emanating from the tail-feathers of the white phoenix as well.

"Eh?" Cangwu Jiu instantly felt his heart tremble as an inexplicable, nameless sensation of danger caused him to instantly explode forth with full power.

Whoosh! The 60 meter tall Cangwu Jiu struck out with his golden right arm, and his saber was absolutely dazzling to behold, leaving behind a beautiful, solitary, perfect arc in the skies as it chopped downwards towards that black phoenix. The black phoenix let out a bird's call; although it was knocked backwards, it wasn't damaged in the slightest.

"Screech!" The white phoenix began to battle against Cangwu Jiu's black vulture…and the black vulture actually began to tremble and crack.

"How can this be? She, she…" Cangwu Jiu was incomparably shocked and angered. This woman was clearly much weaker than him! Ji Ning was one thing; he had been famous before this, and was even capable of battling with Xiamang Zishang for so long. Most likely, Cangwu Jiu himself was only on par with Ji Ning.

But how was it that this woman, who had no reputation whatsoever, was able to completely block him now?

"Not happening. Don't believe it." Cangwu Jiu exploded with power, also manifesting two more heads and four more arms. He now wielded three scimitars in his hands, and he transformed into a tempest as he shot forward, his scimitar-light seeming capable of splitting the skies and carrying a terrifying majesty.

But the black phoenix and the white phoenix supported each other…and were actually able to block the berserk Cangwu Jiu.

Previously, Mu Northson, the Whitewater Hound, Little Qing, Immortal Fivecraze, Adept Vastriver, Northmont Baiwei, and Ninelotus were all extremely nervous. Now, they were all stunned. How had Yu Wei suddenly exploded forth with such power? Her defense was completely airtight, causing even Cangwu Jiu to be unable to do anything to her at all. This was simply inconceivable!

It was Cangwu Jiu she was facing!

"Can, can it be that senior apprentice-sister had been hiding her power all along?" Northson was puzzled. "But she hasn't been training for much longer than senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning has."

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

The Xia Emperor, watching, couldn't help but smile. "The situation has just reversed."

"Just like in the poem; 'the same mountains and the same rivers, with seemingly no path forward; then the shady willow tree, the brilliant flowers, and a mountain village'1. Something pleasant and unexpected has just occurred." Lu Dongbin sighed in surprised. "Who would've imagined that at this critical moment, the little girl managed to reawaken her memories from her past life? Judging from what I saw…her reawakening of memories caused her to master at least four complete Dao-Paths. Her level of insight in the Grand Dao of Taiji is quite high as well; in her past life, she must've been a fairly formidable Loose Immortal."

The Grand Dao of Taiji and four complete Dao-Paths; this would make someone a supreme expert amongst Loose Immortals.

"She had already mastered two Daos before this." The Immortal Elder of the Northlands, nursing a cup of wine, rolled his head. "When one is at a high enough level of comprehension, it does indeed become possible for the memories from a previous life to reawaken. However, it is quite hard for the memories of a past life as a Loose Immortal to completely awaken; it seems in that instant, she suffered a severe mental blow which stimulated her, causing her soul to instantly explode and activate the hidden memories."

"Mm."

"Right."

The Pure Yang True Immortals present all nodded.

The Conclave of Immortal Destiny had more than a hundred thousand participants, and there were many reincarnated Immortals amongst them. It was indeed theoretically possible for them to reawaken their past memories…but it was extremely, extremely rare.

"What's the name of this little lass?" Lu Dongbin looked towards the Xia Emperor. "I don't know her name yet."

"Her name is Yu Wei. Her Daoist title is Rainbowflame; because she is a reincarnated Immortal, she is referred to by others as the Rainbowflame Fairy," the Xia Emperor said. "She, too, hails from the Black-White College of Stillwater Commandery. You already know about Ji Ning, who is next to her. This time, the Black-White College has produced three attendees, and each of them truly are formidable."

"The Sloppy Daoist is the disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu, and his power is on par with Cangwu Jiu, Xiamang Zishan, and Ji Ning. This Yu Wei was originally weaker, but now that she's regained her former memories, she's on the same level as well," Sovereign Hao said with a sigh.

"As I see it, the Sloppy Daoist has trained for more than a century, while Yu Wei had memories from a past life that she reawakened. But Ji Ning has only trained for thirty years, yet already has such incredible power…this is rather inconceivable." Lu Dongbin stroked his jaw, murmuring to himself, "As I see it, Ji Ning has tremendous potential."

The Xia Emperor laughed. "Lu Dongbin, can it be that you want to take on a disciple?"

"No, no, no…I actually have more of a liking for that little lass named Yu Wei." Lu Dongbin's eyes lit up. "She was actually stimulated to the point of having her former memories awaken; this little lass is quite, quite amusing."

The others all immediately shook their heads. Reincarnated Immortals generally didn't have much potential; if they weren't able to overcome the tribulation and become a Celestial Immortal in their past life, then the chances they would succeed in this one would be very, very low.

"Ji Ning does have some potential." The Xia Emperor murmured quietly to himself. He had already taken notice of twenty one youths in this Conclave, each of which had tremendous potential; Ji Ning was one of them.

Within the world of the Diagram.

BOOM!

Ji Ning was suppressed by Xiamang Zishan's might; although he used his agility to counter the other's raw power, he was still wounded by their colliding blows. Still, this sort of injury was minor; Ning was still paying full attention to his senior apprentice-sister, only to discover that under Cangwu Jiu's attack, Yu Wei had suddenly exploded with power. She was actually able to fight him to a standstill! This caused Ning to feel both astonished and delighted.

"Junior apprentice-brother, come over here. Hurry up and collect your sword array," Yu Wei sent frantically.

"Senior apprentice-sister!" Ning stopped wasting time with Xiamang Zishan. With a whoosh, he swept through the air to move towards Yu Wei, while at the same time mentally commanding the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] swords to return to him.

"Let's go." Yu Wei grabbed Ning by the arm.

The black phoenix and the white phoenix suddenly began to revolve around each other, forming into a black and white vortex. Yu Wei grabbed Ning, then charged into the vortex.

Swoosh!

A brilliant, dazzling streak of black-and-white light appeared in the skies. They had instantly moved more than a thousand kilometers away.

"What, what technique is this?!" Xiamang Zishan walked over, saying in astonishment, "How could they have escaped so quickly? Cangwu Jiu, even you were unable to catch them? Didn't you say that you are the fastest person in the world at the Wanxiang level?"

"I can't catch them." Cangwu Jiu shook his head. "I can tell that this is evasive technique which uses a magic treasure…a technique that was specifically designed for escape, formed from the Grand Dao of Taiji. This woman has an extremely high level of comprehension in the Grand Dao of Taiji!"

Within a mountain cave. After setting up a simple formation, Ning plopped his rear down.

"Xiamang Zishan really was an absolute madman." Ning felt utterly exhausted; the earlier battle had been simply too frenetic. Suddenly, from the corner of his eye he saw a pool of water located deep in the cave. He immediately ran over, then used his hands to cup some water and wash his face. "That feels great."

Yu Wei laughed.

She was going to be able to continue to stay with her junior apprentice-brother in the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers.

She walked towards the side of the pool, then sat down. With a wave of her hand, she produced a jade flute, then began to gently blow it.

The sound of the flute was melodious and leisurely, seeming to reach deep into a person's heart.

Ning, stunned, put down the water in his hands and sat down to listen.

The sound of the flute was drifting and soft…

…it spoke of a vast grassland, a peaceful, gentle tribe, and a female child who was the member of that small tribe…

…the peace was destroyed, and disaster descended…

…the female child embarked upon the path of slaughter, becoming a terrifying female Asura…

One scene after another, starting from childhood in the past life, to death and reincarnation…they all entered Ning's mind.

The sound of the flute seemed to possess an indescribable magic power, causing Ning to feel joy, rage, sorry, and pleasure. It was a flute song that bored straight through to the heart. Ning was completely drawn into it. He looked at the black-robed woman playing the flute. This memory was deeply engraved into Ning's heart. Even after a tremendous period of time passed, he would still be unable to forget it.

Drip.

A single tear fell down onto the ground, staining the dirt.

Ning was startled awakened from the reverie the flute song had brought him into. Only now did he realize that Yu Wei had two tearstains on her face. He couldn't help but call out, "Senior apprentice-sister!" Yu Wei trembled…then gently put down her flute.

"Senior apprentice-sister, you…" Ning was a bit worried.

"I'm fine." Yu Wei shook her head, looking at Ning. She even smiled. "I just thought of some things in my past life. Although everything has already happened…now that the memories have truly returned, they really do make it hard to control one's emotions. Still, those are all in the past now; let the past be in the past. I've already reincarnated into a different world. In truth…I would rather not know about what happened in my past life."

"Can you talk to me about it?" Ning asked.

"I don't want to." Yu Wei shook her head.

"Then…did you have a Dao-companion in your past life?" Ning suddenly asked.

Yu Wei was startled. She gave Ning a close look, as though wanting to see something in Ning's expression. She then gently shook her head. "I did not!"

1. In the original Chinese, only a very short fragment of the poem was included, which has become an idiom. The full poem, which comes from 1166, involves a weary traveler who travelled through countless mountains that seemed identical, but then finally, as he was expecting yet another identical mountain, he saw a beautiful village with a willow tree and brilliant flowers beneath it.

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Chapter 13 – Immortals and Gods

"Oh." Ning said hurriedly, "I…used up a lot of divine power in the previous battle. I need to take a rest."

As he spoke, Ning hurriedly walked deeper into the cave. Waving his arm, he chopped out a neat, flat region onto the ground and then lay down. Using his arms as a pillow, he immediately closed his eyes and began to snore.

He seemed calm, but in his heart Ning felt a bit confused.

"Why the hell did I ask senior apprentice-sister if she had a Dao-companion or not?" Ning's mind was restless. He was a smart person, and an Immortal cultivator who had understood his own heart long ago. He quickly understood the issue. "Can it be that I'm…"

"Forget it…how can Dao-companions be so casually joined?"

"Am I mentally ready?"

"Not yet! I'm not yet ready…"

Ning turned in his sleep, suppressing everything in his heart.

He thought back to the experiences he had in the past half year. He thought back to the first time he had met her, and all the times he had met her up till today. Ning had to admit…from the very beginning, he had felt very friendly towards her, because she was unlike Ninelotus, who had many beliefs that were different from Ning's. He and Ninelotus were from different worlds. As for Yu Wei…many of her beliefs were the same as his, and her personality was similar as well!

Her birth…

Her experiences…

Her talent…

He and Yu Wei were very similar. She was even more intelligent than him! The past half year he had spent with her was very relaxed and comfortable. She had silently, tracelessly slipped deep into his heart with her warmth. Just now in particular, when she had played the flute, the song of the flute had thoroughly penetrated his heart. Ning could even feel the joy, the pain, and the sadness she felt in her heart…

This feeling, as though he had touched her soul, made Ning feel a certain softness towards her. He even wanted to go over and hug her. This was why his subconscious had moved him to ask her about Dao-companions.

"Dao-companions…this sort of promise cannot be casually made." Ning sighed quietly to himself in his heart.

Yu Wei watched Ning lie there deep in the cave. She rose, then walked to the entrance of the cave, where she sat down. She stared at the vast, seemingly endless mountain forest. The cave was protected by a bewildering formation, and so the outside world couldn't see inside it.

Moonlight shone down into the cave.

Yu Wei picked up her flute, holding it as she sat there quietly.

"I can feel junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning's heart."

"Previously, I held back, wanting to let it all pass."

"But on the sixth day I was in the Diagram, I was in dire straits…despite how vast the Diagram was, junior apprentice-brother ran into me. Can it be that fate is telling me that I should be together with him?"

"But…can I even have a Dao-companion? Can I dare hope for a Dao-companion?"

Yu Wei stared at the moon hanging high in the skies. She quietly asked…"Heavens above…what should I do?"

Yu Wei understood that she had reached a fork in the path.

If she chose to be with Ning, then the two might have a chance. But if she didn't want to be with him, then after leaving the Diagram, she would have to separate from him and make a clean break.

One month after another passed. The number of Wanxiang Adepts within the Diagram dropped continuously. Now, virtually all the remaining competitors within the Diagram were monsters capable of exploding forth with power that rivaled ordinary Loose Immortals.

Within the imperial citadel's plaza.

"Haha, only a thousand remain within the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, but the Black-White College has taken up three of those slots!" Immortal Fivecraze was utterly delighted. There was no way any of the other powers of Stillwater Commandery, including the Northmont clan of Stillwater, could compare to the Black-White College in this regard. The three experts the Black-White College had sent out this time were simply too dazzling.

"Even the Marquis of Stillwater came over to chat with me for quite a long period of time. Even other marquises came over, as well as leaders of supreme clans and sects." Immortal Fivecraze then frowned. "But it's weird…Ji Ning is clearly very powerful as well, but why is it that those who came to chat with me discussed little Sloppy even more?"

He could sense the goodwill these major clans and sects were displaying towards the Black-White College was primarily aimed towards befriending the Sloppy Daoist. It seemed as though Ji Ning and Yu Wei were far from being comparable with the Sloppy daoist.

"Weird, weird. Ji Ning is very formidable as well, and he's trained for an even shorter period of time." Immortal Fivecraze was puzzled.

"How bizarre." Lu Dongbin, who had spent a period of time napping in the main hall of the Skylight Palace, stared at the Diagram. "I took a three month nap…why is that this little girl named Yu Wei still hasn't become Dao-companions with Ji Ning yet?"

"Dao-companions represent a promise that cannot be so easily uttered!" The Pure Yang True Immortal who was dressed in black robes decorated with a blood-colored taiji diagram shook his head.

"You can't dawdle when it comes to matters of love!" Lu Dongbin shook his head. "Based on my experiences roaming the Three Realms and countless minor worlds, matters of love must be immediately seized and settled down upon at the critical moments in time! If you hesitate, the more you dawdle, the more difficult it will become to form Dao-companions. I am willing to bet on it! If this Yu Wei and Ji Ning are to become Dao-companions, they'll become Dao-companions within the Diagram. If they don't, then after they leave it…without these shared daily life-and-death experiences, the chances will drop even more!"

"Do any of you dare to bet against me?" Lu Dongbin stared at them.

"Lu Dongbin, you are a Sage of Love. You spout so much wisdom about love…why don't you have a Dao-companion of your own?" The True Immortal with the blood-colored taiji diagram robes spoke out.

"Those in the game are blinded by it. Those who are watching the game have clear eyes." Lu Dongbin gave a calm response, then stopped talking.

Within a quiet mountain. A bewildering formation had been set down. Ning was seated in the lotus position atop a grassy area.

Streams of fire and water swirled around the surrounding area. Surges of power from the Solar Star and the Lunar Star were being absorbed into Ning's body. Although they were within the world of the Diagram, he was still able to train in the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens].

Rumble…

A series of rumbling sounds could be heard from within Ning's body. His bones were clattering together as his muscles and skin were rapidly transforming.

At his current level, Ning's physical body was already extremely tough; he wasn't too far off from the likes of the Fiendgod, Xiangliu Fang. A casual breath from him could generate a hurricane that would sweep out for a thousand kilometers.

Slowly…everything calmed down. Ning opened his eyes, revealing a smile.

"Junior apprentice-brother?" Yu Wei, who had been standing guard for him, looked eagerly at Ning.

"Mm. I've already broken through." Ning let out a laugh. "It took me quite a few years, but I've finally managed to reach the twelfth level of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens]. And it really is different; the twelfth level of this technique…it's comparable to ordinary early Primal stage Fiendgod Body Refiners. My divine body and my soul have completely joined…and I can feel that my soul is rapidly strengthening."

Fiendgod Body Refiners and Ki Refiners…these were two different paths. Upon reaching the Primal level, Fiendgods could directly split off a clone! Upon reaching the Void level, they could pluck out a hair and transform it into a clone!

Now that Ning had trained to the twelfth stage, his body was actually quite similar to the Primal Turtle-Snake in that it was capable of nourishing the soul. In addition, he was able to join his soul to his body! His soul was able to enter every single part of his body. In other words…Ning's current body was no longer made of mere flesh. His flesh and blood contained his soul within it as well! This was why he was now capable of creating mobile 'clones'.

"Your soul is rapidly gaining in strength?" Yu Wei hurriedly said, "I heard that the souls of Fiendgods are generally even more powerful than that of ordinary Primal Daoists."

"It's true." Ning nodded. "The soul-nourishment provided by my divine body is even more astonishing than that provided by the Primal Turtle-Snake…based on what I sensed when I created my Primaltwin, my Fiendgod body is strengthening my soul at least five or six times faster than the Primal Turtle-Snake did."

"No wonder Fiendgod Body Refiners are so powerful. Everyone says that at higher levels, Fiendgod Body Refiners are even more powerful, especially after overcoming the Celestial Tribulation and becoming Empyrean Gods. Empyrean Gods are comparable to Pure Yang True Immortals in power," Yu Wei sighed.

"Senior apprentice-sister, you know about Empyrean Gods and Pure Yang True Immortals?" Ning was startled.

"Don't forget that I'm a reincarnated Immortal." Yu Wei nodded. "Based on what I know…for Immortal cultivators, the stages are Zifu Disciples, Wanxiang Adepts, Primal Daoists, Void-level Earth Immortals…and, for those who pass the Celestial Tribulation, the stages are Celestial Immortals and True Immortals! True Immortals are also known as Pure Yang True Immortals. After them are Golden Immortals of the Great Firmament, also known as Daofathers of the Great Firmament! Alternately, they can just be addressed as Daofather! Daofathers are the absolute most supreme figures of the Three Realms. They are unquestioned hegemons who are even more exalted in status than the Celestial Emperor!"

Ning's eyes lit up. He didn't know any of these things. He had only trained for thirty years. Compared to someone who had memories from a past life, he did indeed know very little regarding the Three Realms.

"Golden Immortals of the Great Firmament, also known as Daofathers of the Great Firmament or as Daofathers?" Ning murmured to himself.

"Mastery of a Dao-Path is a prerequisite for becoming a Celestial Immortal. Mastery of a Grand Dao is a prerequisite for becoming a Pure Yang True Immortal. And mastery of a Heavenly Dao is the prerequisite for becoming a Daofather of the Great Firmament!" Yu Wei said.

Ning's heart shook. Mastery of a Heavenly Dao?

When the Black-White College's Headmaster Daoist Jadesea had discussed these things with him, he hadn't explained in such detail. It seemed as though Yu Wei was truly extraordinary in her past life. At least, she knew much more than Daoist Jadesea!

"After Pangu established the heavens and the earth, there were ten Heavenly Daos! This is common knowledge for Celestial Immortals. It was a Celestial Immortal who told me this," Yu Wei said.

"Ten Heavenly Daos?" Ning immediately asked, "What are the ten?"

"They are the Heavenly Dao of Metal, the Heavenly Dao of Wood, the Heavenly Dao of Water, the Heavenly Dao of Fire, the Heavenly Dao of Earth, the Heavenly Dao of Life, the Heavenly Dao of Destruction, the Heavenly Dao of Yin, the Heavenly Dao of Yang, the Heavenly Dao of Primordial Chaos," Yu Wei said.

Ning immediately memorized this all.

Metal, wood, water, fire, earth, Yin, Yang, life, destruction, and primordial chaos!

"All things in the world were born from primordial chaos. They are then split into Yin and Yang. The Three Realms…its foundation comes from the Five Elements," Yu Wei said. "For example, your Dao of Rainwater actually belongs to the Grand Dao of the Waterdrop. As for the Grand Dao of the Waterdrop, it belongs to the Heavenly Dao of Water."

Ning nodded.

Dao. Grand Dao. Heavenly Dao.

The Five Elements served as the foundation for the functioning of the Three Realms, and were all Heavenly Daos. This was as he had expected.

"Mastery of a complete Grand Dao is already incredibly difficult," Yu Wei said. "As for the legendary Heavenly Daos…only those who master them can have the exalted title of 'Daofather'. After all, the Heavenly Daos are the source of all things. Thus, their masters can be titled Daofathers!"

Ning now understood.

Daoist Threelives had been born with mastery of a Grand Dao. He had later mastered many Grand Daos, but never a Heavenly Dao.

"Daofathers of the Great Firmament are seated above all. They possess inconceivable power, and are the hegemons of the Three Realms," Yu Wei said. "Pure Yang True Immortals are the experts of the Three Realms! Daofathers won't casually engage in combat, and so the most glorious, eye-catching figures of the Three Realms are actually the True Immortals. As for Celestial Immortals, they are also free-willed, unconstrained figures with immortal life. They can dominate a region for themselves; after all, Pure Yang True Immortals are fairly rare in the Three Worlds, and so Celestial Immortals have very high statuses as well."

Ning nodded. Only today, did he understand…some of the higher levels of the Immortal path.

"What about the path of Fiendgods?" Ning immediately asked.

"After Fiendgods pass the Heavenly Tribulation, they become Empyrean Gods! Empyrean Gods are comparable to Pure Yang True Immortals in power. Every single one of them is an expert of the Three Realms," Yu Wei said. "Above Empyrean Gods are True Gods! True Gods are generally actual Fiendgods who have created their own divine ability. They war against the heavens and against the earth with terrifying power, and are absolutely comparable to Golden Immortal Daofathers of the Great Firmament!"

"True Gods are the highest level of Fiendgods possible. According to legends…the Fiendgods born in the primordial chaos before the heavens were established were at all least Empyrean Gods! The strongest amongst them were True Gods of Primordial Chaos! They were born into the very highest realms of power of the Three Realms. Even without training, they were incomparably frightening figures."

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Chapter 14 – The Final Month

Yu Wei said with envy, "They are the true favored children of the heavens. Ki Refiners revere Golden Immortal Daofathers of the Great Firmament, whereas Fiendgod Refiners revere True Gods of Primordial Chaos. Daofathers or True Gods; ever since Pangu established the heavens, they have been the most supreme of existences in the Three Realms. They are the ones who truly determine the destiny of the Three Realms. Even the Celestial Emperor is chosen by these major powers."

Ning suddenly felt many thoughts flood his mind.

Daoist Threelives was born in primordial chaos and had mastered a Grand Dao. Clearly, Daoist Threelives was a True God of Primordial Chaos!

However, according to what the giant yellow bear had said, Daoist Threelives had once suffered a catastrophic defeat, losing an arm in it. The proud Daoist Threelives elected not to regrow his arm, continuing to only have one arm. Thanks to his constant research and meditation, he had developed one of the ten most terrifying divine abilities of the Three Realms…the [Starseizing Hand]!

"Ji Ning." The giant yellow bear's voice suddenly echoed in Ning's mind.

"Senior," Ning immediately said.

"Amongst Empyrean Gods, there are those with powerful divine abilities and those with weak ones. Amongst True Gods, there are those with formidable divine abilities and ordinary ones. How can they all possibly be on par?" The giant yellow bear clearly felt displeased on behalf of his master. "In addition…if Master was still alive, I imagine that he would have long ago mastered a Heavenly Dao. Only…despite the passage of ages, Master has never come to seek me out…"

The giant yellow bear's voice suddenly faded away. He didn't know if Daoist Threelives was still alive or not either.

After this conversation with Yu Wei, Ning's vision had been greatly broadened.

At the most exalted, venerable positions were the Daofathers of the Great Firmament and the True Gods of Primordial Chaos. The Three Realms were their chessboard, and they controlled everything in it.

The Celestial Emperor and the Yama-Kings of Hell were jointly decided upon and appointed by them.

"However…I wonder what Daoist Threelives encountered in the past, which caused even him to feel that he had no confidence in being able to survive," Ning pondered to himself. When Daoist Threelives had left behind the underwater estate, he had gone to deal with a so-called 'tremendous calamity'. Afterwards, all word of him had been lost, and he had never returned to the underwater estate.

Daoist Threelives was a major power. Something that could cause even him to feel uncertain regarding his chances of survival…what sort of calamity was that?!

"The Three Realms…"

"I imagine that senior apprentice-sister Yu Wei doesn't know the true face of the Three Realms either." Ning continued to feel as though a layer of gauze was preventing him from understanding the truth of things. For example, in the Netherworld Kingdom, he had encountered a terrifyingly strong power which had assaulted the Six Paths of Reincarnation. Fortunately, Ning had leapt into the Six Paths and been reincarnated; otherwise, he would've died permanently on the spot.

"Who attacked the Six Paths of Reincarnation?" The more Ning's horizons were broadened, the more he was amazed…because the Six Paths of Reincarnation were the most important, central region for the functioning of the Three Realms. Most likely, even major powers wouldn't dare to act rashly there. Otherwise, the other major powers would be enraged and join forces to deal with them.

"I'm nothing but an ant; this matter isn't for me to worry about. If the heavens fall, the tall fellows will hold it up." Ning quickly discarded these thoughts for now.

Time passed in the blink of an eye. It was already the twelfth month within the trial of the Diagram. This was the final month!

A dirty-looking maiden and a violet-robed youth were walking forward, shoulder-to-shoulder.

"Where the hell did this Adept Ninedeaths come from?" The violet-robed youth glanced sideways at the maiden, secretly muttering to himself. He, Xiamang Qi, was one of the most outstanding young members of the imperial Xiamang clan, second only to Xiamang Zishan! In addition, he had never been convinced of his inferiority; he always wanted to be able to overcome Zishan with his power.

During this Conclave, Xiamang Qi had revealed his magnificence as well. His strength was formidable…but upon encounter this girl, this so-called 'Adept Ninedeaths', he had felt deflated.

"This girl is too powerful. No matter how I hit her, I couldn't injure her. Her body is just like a magic treasure." The violet-robed youth was very resigned. "Adept Ninedeaths? More like Adept Nodeath!"

The dirty maiden had said to him back then, "I have enough talismans already. The more time passes in the Diagram, the more powerful the survivors are. Many of them have already formed into small teams. Kid, you seem pretty powerful; shall we join into a team of our own? That will make the final two months easier."

"If we encounter any enemies and kill them, can I have the talismans?" Xiamang Qi listed his requirement.

"Fine." The dirty maiden nodded, and so Xiamang Qi and Adept Ninedeaths joined forces.

"Eh?" The two suddenly came to a halt. They stared into the distance, where four figures had appeared, some male and some female.

There was a wild, black-haired youth who was very skinny, a silver-haired maiden, a woman who was so beautiful she looked like a fairy from the legendary Moon Palace, and a bald, black-skinned youth. The black-skinned youth was actually barefoot, and he wielded a gnarled black staff in his hands.

"Kindwater Qi? Second brother, why is it that you are travelling alongside Adept Danzhu?" Xiamang Qi laughed.

"Big brother?!" The skinny, black-haired youth called out in surprise.

These two were known as the 'Two Qis' of the imperial capital. This was because both of them had strange, rather wicked personalities. However, the two just so happened to take a liking to each other, and they had become sworn brothers. Xiamang Qi was the elder brother, while Kindwater Qi was the younger brother. 1

"The more time passes, the more dangerous it gets; I no longer dare to travel alone." Kindwater Qi said with resignation, "I feel confident in my power, but even Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu have formed an alliance long ago. We have to do the same! The four of us even fought against those two. Fortunately, thanks to Blackstone's presence, the two were frightened into immediately fleeing."

"Oh?" Xiamang Qi was surprised, and the dirty maiden by his side, Adept Ninedeaths, revealed a look of surprise as well.

Someone had caused Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu to flee?

"Introduce us," Xiamang Qi said with a laugh.

"You already know Adept Danzhu of the East Seas." The black-haired Kindwater Qi pointed at the beautiful maiden who looked like a fairy from the Moon Palace. Adept Danzhu smiled and nodded at them.

Kindwater Qi then pointed at the silver-haired maiden. "This is Adept Snowfly; her magic arts are extremely powerful."

He then pointed at the barefoot, black-skinned youth with a gnarled black staff. "This is Adept Blackstone. Adept Blackstone is exceptionally skilled in the Fuxi Formation Staffs, and a true grandmaster of the art of formations…with him present, we can flee when we wish and attack when we wish. Adept Blackstone is also extremely powerful in close combat. With a single blow, he was able to block an attack from Xiamang Zishan…as I see it, Adept Blackstone absolutely has a chance to become number one in this Conclave."

Xiamang Qi and Adept Nindeaths both looked towards the bald, staff-wielding, black-skinned youth.

It was quite curious. When they faced this bald, black-skinned youth, they felt as though they were facing the vast heavens themselves…

"A grandmaster of formations? Capable of withstanding Xiamang Zishan in close combat?" Xiamang Qi was secretly shocked.

"Hm…" The dirty maiden looked towards the bald, black-skinned youth with curiosity as well. He, in turn, was looking back at her. The two of them both had an indescribable feeling…that the other was quite terrifying!

"How about it? Shall we travel together?" Xiamang Qi asked.

Kindwater Qi looked towards the black-skinned youth.

The black-skinned youth gave the dirty maiden a glance, then revealed an extremely thin smile. "Fine."

"Fine." The dirty maiden spoke out as well.

And so…

The six of them joined into a squad.

In this squad, Adepts Blackstone, Ninedeaths, and Danzhu had already acquired more than 1400 talismans. As for the other three, Xiamang Qi, Kindwater Qi, and Adept Snowfly still needed a bit more.

Ji Ning and Yu Wei were wandering the mountains as well. They moved as fast as the wind, instantly moving across the peaks. As they walked, they released their divine sense to scan up to a thousand kilometers away.

Although it was the twelfth month already, nothing had changed between the two. Ji Ning and Yu Wei acted like a pair of normal fellow disciples.

"Senior apprentice-sister, how many talismans do you have? How many more do you need?" Ning asked.

"Do you have enough?" Yu Wei asked.

"I have 1200 or so," Ning said. "Actually, since everyone is going to have different amounts of talismans, I should have a 99% chance of ranking in the top eighty."

"Better to be safe. Only if you have 1370 will you be absolutely certain to be qualified of passing the trial," Yu Wei said. "I have slightly fewer talismans than you; I have nearly eight hundred."

Ning nodded. The two had continued to split talismans based on who had killed the foe. Although Ning had been trying to hold back for her sake, ever since he had reached the twelfth level of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, his power had simply grown too great. Upon encountering some powerful foes, Ning had to explode forth with full power. Naturally, he would thus be the one to kill them, and so the talismans would go to him.

"In the final month, I imagine that all of the remaining survivors have hundreds of talismans on them. As long as we just kill two or three, we'll have enough," Ning said.

"But killing those final two or three will be very hard." Yu Wei spoke with great solemnity as well.

There were now fewer and fewer people present. It was quite hard to run into someone, and in each battle, if the enemy felt that the situation was bad, they would immediately flee! To kill them or force them to give up their talismans…it was far too difficult!

"We still have plenty of time. We have more than half a month," Ning said.

The two continued to advance, and in the blink of an eye, they had passed more than a thousand kilometers. Their divine sense continued to sweep out to a thousand kilometers as well.

"Eh?" Ning and Yu Wei suddenly raised their heads, staring towards the sky. A ship was charging downwards at high speed towards them.

"That ship is covered with restrictive spells, making it unable to be scanned by divine sense. They come with ill intentions. Be careful." Yu Wei mentally messaged Ning, but the two were bold due to their power; they wouldn't easily retreat or flee.

Swoosh!

A thousand kilometers was passed in an instant. The ship vanished, and six figures appeared on the grassy ground.

Ning and Yu Wei's pupils contracted.

"Xiamang Qi, a genius of the imperial Xiamang clan. Kindwater Qi, a genius of the Kindwater clan. And Adept Danzhu!" Ning and Yu Wei's glances fell upon the figure of the beautiful Adept Danzhu, who looked like a fairy maiden from the Moon Palace. Of the six before them, the most famous one was Adept Danzhu.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

"For the Ji Ning – Yu Wei pair, their earlier encounter with Xiamang Zishan and Cangwu Jiu was a tribulation." Lu Dongbin said with a sigh, "That time, they only escaped because Yu Wei awakened her former memories. This time…these six are even more powerful. That dirty maiden has mastered five complete Daos! That bald, bare-foot, black-skinned youth is an expert in formations. Both of these two are capable of fighting to be the number one competitor in this Conclave. Upon encounter this six-person squad…Ji Ning's duo is in huge trouble."

"Within the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, how many have died in the past year? Each battle was a life-and-death trial for them. For your precious little pair of Dao-companions…this is nothing more than a slightly tougher trial," Truelord Chiji said calmly. 2

"This battle is going to be interesting," the Xia Emperor laughed.

There were roughly twenty or so that had a chance at the top spot in this Conclave.

Adept Ninedeaths, Adept Blackstone, and Ji Ning, after his recent breakthrough…they all had a chance at becoming number one in this Conclave.

1. Qi can mean bizarre/strange/wondrous.

2. Chiji literally means crimson taiji; this is most likely the person with the blood-taiji robes mentioned earlier.

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Chapter 15 – Dire Circumstances

Although Ji Ning and Yu Wei were wary, they weren't afraid. As they saw it, the only one of the six who they needed to be careful of was Adept Danzhu. Ning had broken through to the twelfth level of the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens, and he was completely confident in being able to defeat Adept Danzhu. What he didn't realize was that although Adept Danzhu was formidable, in this six-person squad, Adept Blackstone and Adept Ninedeaths were even more frightening.

Whoosh! The bald, barefoot, black-skinned youth suddenly smirked, and instantly, streaks of light shot out everywhere like bolts of lightning. They were ancient, plain-looking Fuxi Staffs.

"Fuxi Staffs! A formation!" Ning was startled. There were very few supreme geniuses who also trained in formations.

Rumble…

Streaks of light intersected and runes formed and flowed. The formation appeared, locking down the nearby region of space for ten kilometers, completely capturing Ning and Yu Wei within it.

"Done." The black-skinned youth said calmly, "I've already sealed this area off. There's no place these two can run to. Whether you decide to kill them or release them is up to you." He actually sat down in the lotus position towards the edges of the sealing barrier, planting his gnarled staff next to him. He just sat there, clearly not wanting to intervene.

He already had enough talismans; for him to set up this grand sealing formation against the enemies was enough of a show of kindness for his teammates. Have him do battle as well? He couldn't be bothered to…and in his bones, he wasn't the type of person who enjoyed battle.

"Ji Ning." Xiamang Qi said coldly, "Obediently hand over all of your talismans, and the two of you can live. Otherwise…death is your only escape!"

"Hand over your talismans!" Kindwater Qi barked as well.

"Hand them over." The silver-haired maiden, Adept Snowfly, barked at them as well.

These three didn't have enough talismans yet. Naturally, they felt the most urgent.

Adept Danzhu smiled. "Fellow Daoist Ji Ning, to tell you the truth, there are people in this squad who are more powerful than me. I urge you to cease any attempts at struggling and hand over the talismans. That way, you will stay alive. You've only trained for a very short period of time; your potential is limitless. There's no need for you to push yourself too far in this Conclave."

Ning stood there in the distance. "Come and take them, if you can." He replied coldly, "You want me to just give them up to you? Keep dreaming."

Alongside Ning's voice, an enormous Waterflame Lotus suddenly appeared and bloomed. The layers of fiery lotus petals and watery lotus petals were incomparably beautiful as they continuously swiveled. Ning and Yu Wei were in the center, protected by the enormous Waterflame Lotus.

"Don't waste words with them," the silver-haired maiden said coldly. "Attack." As she spoke, a horsetail whisk suddenly appeared in her hand. She flicked it outwards, and thousands of white strands flew towards the air, then formed into a bizarre beast's head. This snowy white beast's head appeared incomparably savage. Its mouth was filled with rows on rows of jagged teeth that gnashed against each other.

The snowy white beast head opened its mouth, then bit downwards towards Ning and Yu Wei.

The Waterflame Lotus, however, continued to protect the two of them.

Crunch. The snowy white head bit down against the Waterflame Lotus, and its countless teeth ground against each other, easily biting through a layer of leaves.

"Oh?" Ning was secretly startled. Still, as he had expected, no one who was able to survive to this stage would be easy to handle.

"Kill." Kindwater Qi's hands formed together into a hand-seal. Instantly, layers of black light flew out from his body, forming giant serpents that appeared in midair. A total of six giant black serpents appeared, wildly assaulting Ning and Yu Wei and also breaking through a layer of leaves.

"Too stubborn." Adept Danzhu let out a soft sigh, but then her eyes suddenly lit up. An invisible divine will attack instantly swept towards Ning and Yu Wei.

Yu Wei's face turned white. As for Ning, he felt as though his soul was being stabbed at by a needle-like divine will. However, his soul and his divine body had now completely fused together, and it was far more durable against this sort of attack. He was able to completely withstand it.

"Ninedeaths, kill them!" Xiamang Qi howled as he transformed into a 54-meter tall giant. His entire body glowed with a golden light, and he radiated an aura that filled the heavens. He was wielding a giant warblade in his hands, and he trampled past the already-shattered lotus leaves as he charged towards Ning and Yu Wei.

"Ji Ning? Seems pretty powerful." The dirty-looking maiden chortled. With a flicker, she transformed to a size of sixty meters, but her body didn't give off a hint of any aura at all. She seemed quite ordinary, just enormous, and she charged forward with completely empty hands.

The five of them had instantly attacked in unison.

"F*ck off!"

Ning suddenly exploded with power, becoming a 54-meter tall giant with an aura that similarly filled the heavens. Letting out an enraged roar, his divine will formed into countless invisible swords, warblades, and longspears that immediately struck towards Adept Danzhu, Adept Snowfly, Adept Ninedeaths, Kindwater Qi, and Xiamang Qi.

When a Ki cultivator broke through to the Primal Daoist level, it was his soul that benefited the most. Similarly, once a Fiendgod Body Refiner broke through to the Primal level, his soul would be tremendously benefited as well. Ning had reached the twelfth stage, and his soul had been nourished by his divine body, resulting it in explosively increasing in strength. In fact, it was already almost comparable to his Primaltwin's soul.

In this clash, the faces of all five immediately changed.

"BREAK!" Ning, his aura filling the heavens, wielded two enormous Immortal swords in his hands as he charged forward, sending the swords howling forth as his sword-light chopped directly against that enormous snowy white beast's head.

BOOM!

The snowy white beast's head was immediately chopped apart and collapsed, transforming back into countless white strands that flew black to the silver-haired maiden with the flywhisk. She had a look of shock on her face.

"Go!" After breaking through the snowy white hound with one sword chop, Ning sent his dominating sword-light forward once more, charging straight against the six giant black snakes, knocking all of them flying backwards.

"Kill!" With the next step, Ning arrived in front of Xiamang Qi, and his sword-light chopped directly towards him.

"Block!" Xiamang Qi was frightened by Ning's ferocious, savage aura. He didn't dare to be overconfident, and he focused on defense. CLANG! With a loud sound, Xiamang Qi's enormous, 54-meter tall giant body was knocked backwards like a meteor, slamming directly against the walls of the distant sealing barrier.

"He's this powerful?!" Xiamang Qi, Kindwater Qi, and Adept Snowfly were both awestruck. Against the three of them, Ning had absolutely suppressed and crushed them; if they were fighting one-on-one, he probably would've taken their lives in just two or three exchanges of blows.

Swoosh. Right at this moment, the dirty-looking youth charged straight forward towards Ning. She struck out with her palm, and it hacked downwards like a knife towards Ning. This palm-blow…it was simply perfectly exquisite. Ning could sense the unfathomable profoundness of it, a profoundness which absolutely surpassed his own sword technique.

Ning raised his own sword as well to meet the palm.

BANG!

The sword-light and the palm collided against each other; the dirty-looking maiden was knocked backwards and forced to take three steps back, while Ning only took a single step back.

"What?!" Ning was shocked. During the final few months in the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers, he had always immediately used the [Starseizing Hand] when he attacked; he didn't dare to hold anything back at this point. After all, none of the survivors were easy to deal with. For example, against Xiamang Qi, even though he had immediately used the [Starseizing Hand, he still hadn't been able to kill him with a single blow. Clearly, all of the survivors were extremely powerful! But this maiden actually dared to block his sharp sword with her hands, and did so successfully?! This was insane!

"The rest of you, go handle that woman. Leave this Ji Ning to me." The dirty-looking maiden was clearly quite excited.

Ning's body blurred momentarily, and he instantly transformed into a three heads and six arms form. With six swords in his hands, he charged straight towards the dirty-looking maiden. "If you don't want to die, then hurry up and leave!"

"It's so rare for me to encounter a good opponent." Instead of leaving, the dirty-looking maiden went to welcome his attacks.

"Kill, kill, kill!" Ning showed no mercy at all. After using [Three Heads, Six Arms, his sword-light rained down like a curtain of lightning. This dirty-looking maiden, however, relied on her pair of palms. They danced in front of her and were actually able to block the majority of the sword-light. Although the remaining sword-light blows were able to pierce onto her body…they were only able to leave some minor wounds on her.

"How can her body be as tough as magic treasures?! My full-force blows can cause even Earth-ranked magic treasures to be torn asunder…but are only able to leave small wounds on her skin?" Ning was completely awestruck. "I can't waste time with her."

With a flash, Ning moved to charge towards Adept Snowfly and Kindwater Qi.

"You are mine!" The dirty-looking maiden's body flashed as well. She, too, transformed with the [Three Heads, Six Arms] technique. She moved alongside Ning as though she were flying water, and her six palms continuously smashed and hacked towards Ning.

"What the hell?!" Ning was frantic. The maiden in front of him was completely insistent on continuing to fight against him. Although Ning's swordplay was ferocious, against a person whose entire body was comparable to an unbreakable magic treasure, there was nothing he could do.

Adept Snowfly, Kindwater Qi, Xiamang Qi, and Adept Danzhu, seeing the situation, all began to focus against Yu Wei.

"Black and white."

"Taiji."

Yu Wei stood there, the black phoenix and the white phoenix twirling around her. She was like an unbreakable steel wall, simultaneously dealing with the attacks of all four. The giant snowy white beast head, the six giant black serpents, and an enormous semi-translucent grand seal in the skies created by Adept Danzhu through a secret art…they came smashing down towards her two phoenixes repeatedly.

"Junior apprentice-brother." Yu Wei sent a frantic mental call.

"Senior apprentice-sister." Ning understood that she wasn't going to be able to hold much longer. Although her power had increased tremendously, and although she was an expert at defense…she still wasn't going to be able to defend against four at once.

The three-headed, six-armed Ji Ning roared furiously, "Get the f*ck away!"

"You aren't strong enough to make me." The dirty-looking maiden, also with three heads and six arms, had completely tied him down.

Ning hadn't even felt this stifled when fighting against Xiamang Zishan. Not only did this maiden have a body like a magic treasure, she also had an extremely, extremely high level of comprehension regarding the Dao. Each of her techniques were unfathomably miraculous, and she was able to completely tie him down, giving him no chance to run away from her at all.

"Junior apprentice-brother." Yu Wei's voice rang out in Ning's mind, and as it did, Ning saw what was happening from afar.

Boom!

The white phoenix finally collapsed, and the 54-meter tall Xiamang Qi charged towardsYu Wei, warblade at the ready.

"Go." Ning frantically summoned the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation]. Instantly, more than seven hundred swords appeared, floating in midair and condensing their power to form a streak of sword-light that shot out towards Xiamang Qi. Although Ning's close combat power had increased tremendously, the power of his [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] hadn't improve that much.

Clang! Xiamang Qi was able to block the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation] with one saber blow. Although his body trembled from the collision, he continued to charged towards Yu Wei.

A single black phoenix was left, and it was struggling to defend against the grand seal, the giant black snake, and the snowy white beast head.

Xiamang Qi was charging into close combat…Yu Wei hurriedly moved to retreat, but given that they were trapped within this grand sealing formation and being attacked from all sides, where could she retreat to?!

Clang! After Xiamang Qi's warblade blocked the attack from the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation, his right arm suddenly began to emanate hundreds of bizarre colors and even a strange black ki that caused one's heart to tremble as he grabbed towards Yu Wei.

"The [Myriad Hibernating Venoms]!" Yu Wei's face immediately changed.

BOOM!

Although she struggled to block, how could she compare in close combat to a Fiendgod Refiner like Xiamang Qi? Instantly, his right arm, still emanating that terrifying black aura, pierced directly through her flank, and the terrifying venoms instantly invaded her entire body, causing her face to instantly turn a deathly dark gray color.

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Chapter 16 – The Seventh Stance of the [Three-Foot Sword]

Yu Wei understood that she was at a true life-and-death juncture. Her body suddenly flashed with a bloody light, forming into a blood-colored taiji symbol.

Swish!

Yu Wei transformed into a streak of blood light, retreating more than three hundred meters before collapsing to the ground. She spat out a mouthful of black-colored blood, a savage, jagged wound in her flank that was filled with black blood.

Ji Ning watched this all happen. His senior apprentice-sister had been stabbed through the flank by Xiamang Qi's palm. She had spat out blood, then collapsed to the ground. This caused Ning's eyes to instantly turn red.

A surge of uncontrollable rage and terror instantly filled his entire soul.

"AAAAHHHHH!!!!" Ning let out a massive howl, and a limitless bloodlust instantly filled every part of his spirit.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

Kill them all!

Kill all who oppose him!

"Angry, eh? Won't do you any good." The dirty-looking maiden continued to tie down Ning, seeming quite entertained.

"CHOP!" Ning let out an enraged howl. This howl emerged from the deepest parts of his soul, from the innermost depths of his spirit.

The three-headed, six-armed Ji Ning simultaneously struck out with all six swords, and six enormous streaks of sword-light immediately shone with incomparable brilliance. They transformed into six strings of line…the sword-light had been compressed into lines! There was nothing capable of stopping Ning…he was going to chop through all which stood in front of him!

He had never felt such a desire to kill. He had never before felt so determined.

The more than ten thousand life-and-death battles he had engaged in over the past year had been even more effective for improving his insights than the past ten years. The [Three-Foot Sword, which Immortal Northwalker had imprinted deep into Ning's soul many years ago, once more arose. A limitless, terrifying killing intent…determination which no one would withstand at all…an sword-heart that was completely enlightened…many former insights…they all combined together, allowing Ning to immediately execute the seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword].

The seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] – Horizontal Sword Execution! 1

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whosh!

Six rays of silken lines of sword light sliced through the body of the dirty-looking maiden. When the first sword descended, her face began to change…because the first sword actually chopped straight through her hand, cutting it off. Her body, as tough as a magic treasure, was completely unable to block this fierce, sharp sword-light.

"RETREAT!" The dirty-looking maiden no longer appeared as relaxed as she had earlier; in fact, she even seemed slightly frightened as she frantically retreated.

Whoosh! As her hand was chopped off, a massive wound appeared on her chest as well.

However, she did managed to actually retreat. Her Fiendgod-like body frantically healed as she stared towards Ning in both terror and rage. "Sword-light compressed into silken lines! He's actually reached this level!"

"Sword-light like silk!"

"He's only trained for thirty years, right? He's actually reached the level of sword-light like silk…he truly is a rare genius of the Dao of the Sword!"

"He truly does have a chance to make it all the way to the top position of this Conclave. I imagine that even Xiamang Zishan is inferior to him."

Within the Skylight Palace, the nine Pure Yang True Immortals and the thousand Celestial Immortals were all stunned by this. They all began to let out sighs of amazement and chatter amongst each other.

Sword-light like silk…

This meant that a person had already treached a truly, incomparably high level of attainment in the Dao of the Sword. The seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword, 'Horizontal Sword Execution', was at the level of 'sword-light like silk'.

Actually, each of the final three stances of the [Three-Foot Sword] were more terrifying than the last. The seventh, the eighth, the ninth…they were so formidable that not even Immortal Northwalker was able to record them down in books.

For the first six stances of the [Three-Foot Sword, it could be said that one would advance through them in an ordinarly fashion, all the way until one reached the Grand Dao Domain level. The increase in power between each stance wouldn't be too great, because these six stances focused on an orderly sort of improvement; they were primarily meant for guiding and teaching, which was why they could be compiled into books. Naturally, the level of improvement between each stance would be a bit smaller, which would make it easier to train.

But those final three stances which could not be recorded down in any books…there was a truly explosive increase in power between each of the three stances.

The seventh stance represented that a person had reached a level that was comparable to the techniques of a Loose Immortal who had trained for three hundred thousand years.

The eighth stance was comparable to the technique of an ordinary Celestial Immortal.

The ninth stance was comparable to the techniques of an absolutely supreme Celestial Immortal!

It was because of the ninth stance that Immortal Northwalker, despite being a Loose Immortal, was comparable to a true Celestial Immortal!

These three stances…there was a huge gap in power between each of them, but each of them were tremendously powerful.

Yu Wei lay there, struggling to control her magic treasures to form into the white phoenix and black phoenix. At the same time, she produced a jade bottle, shattered it with her elemental ki, then swallowed a pill into her mouth.

Rumble…the wound in her flank began to rapidly heal.

"Myriad Hibernating Venoms." Yu Wei knew that this was going to be trouble.

The Myriad Hibernating Venoms was a divine ability which the Black-White College had as well. However, the imperial Xiamang clan had countless divine abilities in its Dao Repository, amongst which was the Myriad Hibernating Venoms. Xiamang Qi trained in this technique!

The Myriad Hibernating Venoms was an extremely deadly, poisonous art; it required one to fuse a large amount of strange poisons into one's own body. Xiamang Qi, as a genius of the imperial clan, naturally was able to easily procure many hard-to-find poisons. Thus, his Myriad Hibernating Venoms was exceptionally vicious. Anything he touched would be instantly poisoned.

A Fiendgod Body Refiner might not fear him too much, but Yu Wei was a Ki Refiner; her body's defensive and recuperative power was insufficient, and she had to rely on pills. But pills that could suppress the dire venom of the Myriad Hibernating Venoms…Yu Wei had none of those precious pills at all.

"Die!" The distant Xiamang Qi howled with laughter, but as he did, a golden sword-light suddenly flew towards him; it was the light of the [Lesser Thousand Swords Formation].

"Although the power of this sword-light is significant, it's not enough to do anything to me." Xiamang Qi had already withstood it several times; this time, he once more swung his arms out as he chopped out with his warblade towards it.

Swish!

The sword-light was as fine as silk, but it carried an incomparably powerful force. Xiamang Qi was caught completely off-guard, and his warblade was instantly knocked flying away. The skin between his thumb and forefinger was split apart, and he himself was knocked backwards. However, Ning suddenly charged towards him at an utterly astonishing speed, and so Xiamang Qi hurriedly produced yet another warblade in his hands.

"Die." The three-headed, six-armed Ning appeared incomparably savage. Six rays of sword-light struck out like a giant windmill of light. Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh!!!!!! Six consecutive rays of sword-light came howling down.

Xiamang Qi stared, eyes bulging. He was instantly chopped apart into small chunks of meat.

A Waterflame Lotus suddenly bloomed, surrounding the chunks of meat and grinding down at them.

"No…" Xiamang Qi's soul was howling. Bu unfortunately…he was ground to death, until nothing remained.

"What?!" Adept Danzhu, Adept Snowfly, and Kindwater Qi were all shocked. Xiamang Qi had been killed in a single exchange!? This level of power was too great! How could Ji Ning's power have increased so explosively in just an instant?!

"All of you should die." Ning immediately turned and threw himself at Adept Snowfly, who was the closest to him.

"Quick, flee!" Adept Danzhu, Adept Snowfly, and Kindwater Qi, upon seeing how savage and ferocious Ning was, didn't dare to take him on at all. They immediately fled at high speed.

"Open." The bald, black-skinned Adept Blackstone, who had been controlling the grand sealing formation this entire time, quickly withdrew the formation.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Adept Danzhu, Adept Snowfly, and Kindwater Qi all immediately charged out of the formation. As soon as they did, Adept Blackstone, with a single thought, once more activated the formation. The barrier of light arose once more.

"Open up!" Ning howled. His sword-light was like silk, and six streams of silken light chopped towards the grand sealing formation.

BOOM!

The grand formation was immediately torn apart, and the three-headed, six-armed Ji Ning charged out from within it.

"What?!" Adept Snowfly, who had just let out a sigh of relief after leaving the formation, was completely shocked. She immediately turned to flee…but how could her speed comparable to that of Ning, a Fiendgod Body Refiner? Although she hurriedly brandished her flywhisk to defend, transforming it into tens of thousands of tightly clustered strings that formed into a strange white fox to defender her, she also threw out a large number of talismans. She frantically sent to Ning, "Take my talismans, spare my life!"

Whoosh whoosh whoosh…six more streams of sword-light came. They chopped straight through the white fox, chopping Adept Snowfly to death.

It was too fast.

The three-headed, six-armed Ning's sword-light was so fast that there wasn't even enough time for Adept Snowfly to be teleported away after throwing out her talismans. She was immediately killed by Ning.

Kindwater Qi and Adept Danzhu were both terrified by Ning's savagery. Adept Danzhu was formidable, but she was a Ki Refiner…how could she possibly summon the courage to fight Ning to the death?

Swish! Swish!

Kindwater Qi and Adept Danzhu both flew far away, fleeing into the distance.

As for the bald, black-skinned Adept Blackstone, he collected his grand sealing formation. The dirty-looking maiden, Adept Ninedeaths, was standing by his side. She was now wearing a pair of silver gloves on her hands.

"Let's go. This isn't the time for us to be fighting with him to the death," Adept Blackstone sent mentally.

Adept Nindeaths gritted her teeth, giving Ning a glare.

"Let's go."

The two were quite decisive in their actions; they realized that Ning's power had already reached a level where it posed a threat to them. They were not confident in actually beating him in a fight to the death, and they already had enough talismans; it wasn't worth it for them to risk it.

Swoosh! Swoosh! The two quickly departed.

The enraged Ning had slaughtere Xiamang Qi and Adept Snowfly, then scared off Kindwater Qi and Adept Danzhu as well as caused Adept Ninedeaths and Adept Blackstone to choose to temporarily retreat as well.

"Hmph." Ning, still filled with a boundless killing intent, swept the area with his gaze. He collected the treasures which Adept Snowfly had left behind, then quickly ran towards his senior apprentice-sister. Upon reaching her side, he immediately returned to his normal form.

"Senior apprentice-sister." Ning saw that Yu Wei's face was so dark, it was almost black. She had been very badly poisoned. He couldn't help but begin to grow frantic. As for Yu Wei, she forced herself to sit up, then smiled as she looked at Ning.

Ning had seen everything; it had been Xiamang Qi who had used the divine ability, 'Myriad Hibernating Venoms'. This divine ability was one which the giant yellow bear of the underwater estate had forbidden him from training in; although it was quite formidable when the practitioner was weak, once the practitioner grew strong, he'd probably actually have to spend some effort in purging the poisons from his body.

But…it had to be said that this was an extremely terrifying divine ability at this level. Anyone who was touched would immediately be poisoned and see their power drastically lowered!

"I have antivenoms here. They might be able to suppress…" Ning was extremely frantic.

"It's fine. I'm fine." Yu Wei sat there, looking at Ning. She smiled, then shook her head gently. When she saw how crazed Ning had become, she actually felt a blissful feeling in her heart.

Ning, seeing the shape his senior apprentice-sister was in, couldn't help but feel pained for her as well as feel frightened.

Forgetting everything else, he immediately took her into her arms.

Yu Wei allowed Ning to hold her. She rested her head against his neck. She could sense the warmth surging from Ning's body, an almost boiling heat that actually startled her.

"I don't want to hesitate any longer." Ning gently murmured into her ears, "I don't want to feel any regrets. No regrets. I was truly afraid…afraid that you were dead. If you were dead…would I keep hesitating?"

Yu Wei reached out as well, tightly clinging to Ning as she revealed a smile on her face. Her tears began to fall down.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

Lu Dongbin suddenly slapped his table, the force of the blow causing the Immortal wine in front of him to be knocked flying. He jumped to his feet, then pointed towards the portion of the enormous Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers where Ning was holding Yu Wei. He roared with laughter, "That's how it should be! That's exactly how it should be! What's the point of being so squeamish and indecisive? If they missed this opportunity, they would never have a chance to be together again for the rest of their lives. They had to seize this opportunity! If you have the right feelings, then you should act on them! You've been fighting in so many life-and-death battles together; how could you not have understood your own hearts? How could you have even hesitated for so long? Bahahaha, but now it's all better. In the final month, they are finally embracing."

1. In Chinese, the original is literally 'one-character sword execution' – the character for the letter 1 in Chinese is just a horizontal line: 一

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Chapter 17 – I Will Never Hurt You

The Xia Emperor, Sovereign Hao, and the others all stared as Lu Dongbin slapped his table so hard, he sent the Immortal wine flying everywhere. They couldn't help but feel speechless.

Lu Dongbin, you are one of the most awe-inspiringly famous figures of the Three Realms. Countless schools located throughout the three thousand major worlds and the trillion minor worlds all venerate you as 'Patriarch Lu'. Is it really appropriate for you to get so excited over a bit of romance between a pair of young Wanxiang-level fellows? This is at most a spot of entertainment; why must you be so excited?

Still…they all understood that this was precisely Lu Dongbin's temperament. He loved to wander the mortal realms, and absolutely delighted in paying attention to the love stories of minor figures as well as playing the role of the Moon Elder as a matchmaker.

The imperial citadel plaza. The disciples of the Black-White College were staring at the massive Diagram in midair, feeling incomparably nervous.

"Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, quick, QUICK! YES! Kill them! KILL THEM ALL!" Mu Northson was incomparably agitated as he stared at the explosively savage Ji Ning within the Diagram.

"Quick, quick!" Immortal Fivecraze watched anxiously as well…and in the end, he finally let out a sigh of relief. "Fortunately, Xiamang Qi was only a Wanxiang Adept as well; although his Myriad Hibernating Venoms is powerful, by relying on some pills, its effects can be suppressed for a short while, at least."

"Whaaaaat?!"

Northson, Little Qing, the Whitewater Hound, Immortal Fivecraze, Adept Vastriver, Northmont Baiwei, and the others all suddenly stared with bulging eyes.

Because…

Ji Ning and Yu Wei were actually embracing!

"But but but…" Northson actually began to stammer.

"Master…and Miss Yu Wei…" Little Qing was completely flabbergasted as well.

Northmont Baiwei was the first to recover. Roaring with laughter, he slapped his thigh. "My brother Ji Ning truly is formidable. In the Conclave of Immortal Destiny's trial within the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers…he actually is going to be returning with a beauty in his arms."

"Right!" Immortal Fivecraze shook his head a few times, feeling extremely delighted. "The Black-White College is going to be the talk of the world for some time now!"

Ninelotus watched this silently. She felt as though the entire world had turned still.

"He ended up with senior apprentice-sister after all."

"It's for the best."

"I am myself. He is himself! Only…should I hope that the two will forever be together and forever be blissful…or should I hope that they will separate as well?" Ninelotus wanted to offer them her prayers, but while searching in her own heart…she found that deep inside her heart, for some reason she couldn't explain, she still felt a strange sort of hope. Hope that Ning and Yu Wei would separate as well.

Ninelotus was an Immortal cultivator who understood her own heart; she immediately analyzed and realized what she was feeling. She quietly said to herself, "It is said that the trial of emotions is the most difficult trial to overcome…although I have already comprehended my own heart, whenever I see Ji Ning, waves always once more appear upon the lake of my heart. If I wish to be able to walk further on the path of Immortal cultivation, then I should never meet him again."

"It will be better for him. It will be better for me as well." Ninelotus made up her mind. After this Conclave of Immortal Destiny concluded, she would return to the Dongyan clan. Unless there was an absolutely pressing need, she would absolutely never meet Ning again.

The nearby Dongyan Forefather glanced sideways at Ninelotus, seated by his side. He saw the look in her eyes.

A look of determination!

The Dongyan Forefather shook his head gently. He had not desired for things between Ning and Ninelotus to end up like this. However…this was Ninelotus' decision, born from her heart. He would not interfere.

Within the Diagram.

Yu Wei was tightly embracing Ning. She could feel the warmth from his body, and she could feel a sense of bliss that came with it. It had been a long, long time since she had felt this sort of bliss. Far too long. Even in her past life, as a child, she had known this bliss for just a brief period of time. Now, she once more felt this sense of bliss and contentment. This caused uncontrollable tears to streak down her face.

She moved slightly, clutching Ning even more tightly to her. In her mind, she couldn't help but think back to that terrifying figure from her memories of her past life, that figure which caused her heart to remble with fear. Yu Wei bit her lips, bit them so hard that blood appeared. In her heart, she quietly said to herself, "I swear that even if it means that I, Yu Wei, will have my soul be shattered…I will never hurt you. Never!"

After making up her decision, Yu Wei actually relaxed. Now that she was mentally prepared for her soul to be destroyed, the knot in her heart had been resolved.

"My man." Yu Wei revealed a smile on her face.

Ning held Yu Wei in his arms, smelling the fragrance that came from her body. The feathery down on her clothings around her neck rubbed against his face. Ning felt calmer than he ever had before. It had been a long time since he had felt so calm. He could feel that the heart of this woman before him was extremely close to his own. It was as though the two of them were one.

"From today onwards," Ning whispered words gently into Yu Wei's ears, words that sounded like a sort of promise, "Yu Wei, you shall be my woman."

"And you'll be mine as well," Yu Wei replied softly.

The two could both sense each other's hearts.

You are willing to die for me.

I am willing to die for you.

In the future, we shall walk the Immortal path together, never leaving or separating.

"Yu Wei." Ning released Yu Wei, looking at the deathly dark pallor to her face. He said with concern, "You've been badly poisoned?"

"The poisons of the Myriad Hibernating Venoms are very unique." Yu Wei gently shook her head. "The pills I have on me only suffice to temporarily suppress them for two to four hours. To actually cure the poison, I would either need an incomparably precious Immortal pill that could resolve countless poisons, or a spirit-pill that was specially designed to dissolve the poisons of this divine ability. There's no way I can do this from within the world of the Diagram. I have to leave."

Ning gritted his teeth. He and Yu Wei had been on the verge of passing the trial, but she now had to depart. If the poison wasn't cured, then once it was no longer suppressed, she would die.

"Enough. Don't be unhappy." Yu Wei smiled as she looked at Ning, contentment in her eyes. "To 'win' you here is better than winning any other award in the Conclave."

"Right." Although Ning wanted to continue to be together with Yu Wei, he immediately said, "Hurry up and cure your poison. It won't be so easily cured, so don't dawdle."

"This is the imperial capital of the Grand Xia, and there are countless experts gathered outside. It won't be too hard." Yu Wei nodded. "Take my talismans."

Whoosh. Instantly, a large number of talismans appeared on the ground.

Yu Wei looked at Ning.

Rumble…

An invisible ripple of power descended, teleporting Yu Wei away.

Ning collected the talismans. Actually, the number of talismans he had acquired after killing Xiamang Qi and Adept Snowfly was more than enough to allow himself and Yu Wei to pass the trial. But she had been poisoned by the Myriad Hibernating Venoms…she had to leave and have it cured.

Swoosh!

Ning took a single step forward, then disappeared as a streak of light.

Within the main hall of the Skylight Palace.

The nine Pure Yang True Immortals were all staring at the Diagram.

"This Yu Wei girl is coming out. Xiamang, have her be teleported over here," Lu Dongbin immediately said.

The Xia Emperor, seated on his imperial throne, simply smiled.

Whoosh!

A black-robed woman whose skin was as lustrous as white jade and who was roughly 1.7 meters tall by Earth measurements suddenly appeared within the main hall of the Skylight Palace, right next to the nine Pure Yang True Immortals.

"Eh?!" Yu Wei stared at her surroundings, immediately poleaxed.

The Xia Emperor was seated on high atop his throne. The other Pure Yang True Immortals who were seated with him hadn't suppressed their auras, and so naturally their auras rippled out…causing absolute terror in Yu Wei. She had seen Celestial Immortals in her past life, and not just one; these figures before her gave her the semse of tremendous power. They absolutely were not Celestial Immortals.

Yu Wei looked backwards and saw nearly a thousand Celestial Immortals. Their auras were similarly shocking.

"Yu Wei, disciple of the Black-White College, prostrates before you, your Imperial Majesty." Yu Wei immediately fell to her knees with tremendous respect.

"Quite clever." The Xia Emperor laughed and praised her. "Arise."

Lu Dongbin was staring at Yu Wei with interest. Actually, the other eight Pure Yang True Immortals present rather looked down on Yu Wei; she was nothing more than a reincarnated female Immortal. The only one intrigued by her was Lu Dongbin.

"Little girl." Lu Dongbin tossed her a gourd of wine, sending it flying towards Yu Wei. Yu Wei immediately caught it, her eyes filled with puzzlement.

"Drink it," Lu Dongbin instructed. Yu Wei stared at the gourd of wine in her hands. Although she was restless and nervous, she knew that there was no way she could refuse. She immediately lifted up the gourd of wine and gulped it all down. The sight of her lifting up her neck and drinking the wine was extremely pretty; however, her neck and her face were a bit black. Slowly, however, the color of her neck and face began to change, beginning to turn pale. Moments later, Yu Wei had transformed from a gray-skinned girl to a white-skinned girl.

"My poison…?" Yu Wei was extremely startled. The poison in her body was no ordinary poison…but just by drinking some wine, it had been dissolved?

"Little girl, this Immortal nectar which you just drank was no ordinary wine. It came from the Xia Emperor's private stash, and he rarely brings it out. Usually, not even Celestial Immortals will have a chance to drink it. This was specially prepared by the Xia Emperor for Lu Dongbin." The Immortal Elder of the Northlands chortled as he spoke.

Yu Wei immediately knelt down in gratitude.

"No need. It was just a gourd of wine." Lu Dongbin seemed quite indifferent. "Alright, you can go now."

"Go?" Yu Wei stared at the vast Skylight Palace. Behind here were nearly a thousand Celestial Immortals who were split into two lines that stretched far off into the distance!

Yu Wei actually didn't know where to go for now.

"Go sit down next to King Yan," the Xia Emperor instructed.

"Yes." Only now did Yu Wei feel a bit relaxed. When she had scanned the room earlier, she saw Yuchi Xiyue seated behind King Yan.

Yu Wei, her thoughts in a confused jumble, walked before King Yan, then sat down behind next, close to Yuchi Xiyue. All of the Celestial Immortals present stared at the black-robed maiden. They had all personally witnessed Lu Dongbin bestow a gourd of wine upon her. All of the Celestial Immortals present knew of the legendary Lu Dongbin, but almost none of them had ever spoken with him before.

"Who is this little girl? She was actually able to chat with Patriarch Lu."

"No clue."

"She should be from the Black-White College; that Ji Ning is from the Black-White College."

The Celestial Immortals were all chatting amongst themselves regarding this.

Yu Wei was now seated behind King Yan, next to Yuchi Xiyue.

"Yu Wei, you are so amazing." Xiyue sent an excited mental message to her. "You were actually able to chat with Patriarch Lu. Not even my grandfather has ever spoken to Patriarch Lu before."

"Yeah…" Yu Wei was still in a dazed state. She had heard of Lu Dongbin even in her past life. He was one of the most famous experts of the Three Realms.

"Right. You and Ji Ning have chosen each other to be life partners?" Princess Xiyue's eyes were shining brightly. As Ning's cousin, she naturally paid tremendous attention to this.

Yu Wei's face instantly became slightly red and bashful, but she still nodded and sent back, "Right." However, in her heart, Yu Wei felt a bit nervous. This was because the outside world had long buzzed with rumors that Princess Xiyue liked Ji Ning very much. It was said that it was Princess Xiyue who had led Ji Ning into King Yan's Estate when he had just arrived at the imperial capital, and that it was because of her that King Yan treated him so kindly!

He was nothing more than a genius. Think about who King Yan was! If it wasn't for Princess Xiyue, how could he have sent his Golden Imperials out to protect Ji Ning?

Everyone believed that Princess Xiyue must have fallen for Ji Ning! Even many members of the Black-White College believed this, and this was Yu Wei's guess as well.

"Has Princess Xiyue truly fallen for Ji Ning as well? Is she going to be angry at me?" Yu Wei was feeling worried.

"WONDERFUL!" Princess Xiyue was absolutely delighted and excited. "Yu Wei, you need to take good care of Ji Ning. Ideally, you would immediately have his babies!"

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Chapter 18 – The Year Ends

Within the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers.

The hazy glow of the moon shone down upon the land. By the side of a river, Ning was seated in the lotus position, a simple bewildering formation having been laid down long ago.

Slash…

Streaks of silken sword-light howled about the region. Sword-light criss-crossed everywhere with astonishing power.

Ning had comprehended the seventh stance of the [Three-Foot Sword] – 'Horizontal Sword Execution'. As a result, he had reached the level of silken sword-light. He had also finally gotten together with Yu Wei, and as a result was in extremely high spirits. His Dao-heart was incomparably pure and comprehended, and his heart was currently calm and peaceful, without a hint of rage or hate poisoning his soul at all.

Generally speaking, after making a breakthrough, one would need to stabilize one's foundations. Ning was doing this right now, focusing his heart on the Dao of the Sword. Naturally, one thread of enlightenment after another was filling his heart.

"Within the heart, each person has their own desires, their own obsessions."

"The stronger the obsession, the sharper the sword."

"What I ask for…"

"Is to be carefree and unrestrained!"

Ning spoke these words silently to himself.

What did it mean to be carefree and unrestrained? It meant to be able to protect those that you loved. It meant being free from the threats of others. It meant having your destiny in your own hands!

"This…is my Dao of the Sword."

"All those who oppose my Dao shall be slaughtered!"

Ning's eyes flashed like lightning.

Whoosh!

Sword-light flew everywhere in an invincible, dominating fashion. The sword-intent contained within it was so powerful, it had reached a height which Ning had never before reached! Every single Sword Immortal had their own sword-heart. There were evil Sword Immortals, arrogant and solitary Sword Immortals, carefree and unrestrained sword…and they all continued to advance in accordance with their own sword-hearts. If they were to hesitate, to be puzzled, to be confused…then their sword-intents would grow weak. Their sword-intents would no longer be pure, and the power of their sword would constantly drop.

"The [Three-Foot Sword] of Immortal Northwalker…it desires to be 'joyful'. Better to live joyfully for a day, than to live a century while stifled."

"My [Three-Foot Sword, however, desires to be carefree and unrestrained! To be joyful is only one part of being carefree and unrestrained; to be carefree and unrestrained is to surpass, to surpass the bounds of the Three Realms, to possess invincible power. Only then can one truly do as one pleases."

Ning understood the difference between himself and Immortal Northwalker.

Immortal Northwalker was a Loose Immortal; it was guaranteed that he would eventually perish under the increasingly powerful Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations. Thus, the sword art of Immortal Northwalker was a sort of savagery that came after a person knew that he was going to die. No matter who opposed him, he would kill, kill, kill! He would exterminate all injustices, exterminate all those who deserve killing. All he asked for was to be joyful. He didn't give a damn how powerful one's backer was; he would still slaughter you!

But in reality…precisely because he knew that he was going to die, Immortal Northwalker's [Three-Foot Sword] was excessively savage. When one went too far into an extreme, one's sword art would actually lessen in power.

Ning had comprehended profound mysteries of the Dao of the Sword through the [Three-Foot Sword, but his sword-intent was his alone. It formed into a [Three-Foot Sword] that belonged to himself and only himself.

In truth, Immortal Northwalker understood this issue as well. This was why when each time the [Three-Foot Sword] was transmitted to an heir, the heir would form a [Three-Foot Sword] of their own.

Ning wielded the Darknorth swords in his hands. He had the feeling of being one with the sword as he strode forth through the world of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers.

"Someone travelling by himself? Let's go. Surround him."

Instantly, three figures came howling through the air. One of them executed a secret art, and a dense cluster of crows flew out, quickly and completely surrounding Ning.

Ning…actually just smiled.

Swish! Ning suddenly moved. His entire body crackled with lightning, and he moved forward with the speed of a Roc and the unpredictability of a ghost, constantly darting and flashing about. His sword-light flew through the air, like thin silken strands. Countless crows were instantly sliced apart, transforming into one spike-type magic treasure after another. And then, like a completely unpredictable ghost, he moved to attack those three.

"Who is this?! He's too fast!"

"Careful!"

"Argh!"

Although Ning hadn't used the [Starseizing Hand, [Heavenly Transformation, or [Three Heads, Six Arms, having only executed the [Pentabolt Vajra] and the [Windwing Evasion, just by relying on these two divine abilities he was still able to explode forth with enough speed and power to deal with them. He wasn't trying to completely crush these people; he was using them to train and refine his sword art.

Sword-light flashed everywhere, beating the three into utterly sorry sights. All they could do was use all their power to try and stay alive as they started to flee.

"He's too fast, and his sword arts are too formidable."

"And he's a Fiendgod Body Refiner, but hasn't even used the [Heavenly Transformation]. I refuse to believe he doesn't even know that divine ability!"

Ning continued to stroll forward.

In this final month within the Diagram, he spread out his divine sense with abandon as he searched for opponents, engaging in one battle after another.

Against weaker Ki Refiners, he wouldn't use the [Heavenly Transformation].

Against tougher foes, he would rely on [Heavenly Transformation].

Against a group of tougher foes…he would use his full power, as well as the [Starseizing Hand]!

In short, Ning was fast, had a savage sword, and was tremendously strong…he wandered the Diagram as he pleased. He didn't care about how many people joined forces against him; he would kill, kill, kill them all as he continued to roam forward! After all, by now, everyone was in a small squad. If things were like they had been back at the very start, with the possibility of hundreds of people joining forces against him, Ning wouldn't have dared to be so bold.

But right now…

There were very few still alive!

That being said, the survivors were all true monsters. Ning used them to temper his sword arts; the sword was a weapon of battle, and in battle his sword arts rose in power with great speed. Ning fused both the Dao-Path of Rainwater and his Dao-Path of the Inferno into his Dao of the Sword; it was hard when it needed to be hard and soft when it should be soft. He was now significantly more powerful than back when he had killed Xiamang Qi and Adept Snowfly.

The people in the imperial citadel's plaza all sighed repeatedly with incomparable amazement. Only two hundred or so individuals were left in the Diagram, and each of them were peerless monsters…but there were still a few that shone with particular splendor.

One of them was Ji NIng!

"Ji Ning's sword arts are improving at a simply astonishing pace. He's far more powerful than he was when he first entered the Diagram. Now, in the entire world of the Diagram…he should be one of the most powerful."

"As I see it, Ji Ning can become number one in this Conclave of Immortal Destiny!"

"He's only trained for thirty years; how can he be so powerful?!"

"Monster, what a monster!"

"This Ji Ning was born to be a Sword Immortal! After only thirty years, he has already reached such a level; I've trained for thirty thousand years, but am inferior to him. What a damn waste of my life!"

"In the entire Conclave, as far as sword arts go….Ji Ning is definitely number one!"

The individuals who had come from the 3600 commanderies and four seas were all chatting amongst themselves.

There was no question whatsoever that of the hundred thousand-plus who had entered this Conclave, Ning was the number one Sword Immortal! After all, those few who were on his level, such as Xiamang Zishan, Adept Ninedeaths, Adept Blackstone, and the Sloppy Daoist were not Sword Immortals. Sword Immortals were extremely skilled in attacking, and so naturally there were many who believed that Ning would become number one in this tournament.

The main hall of the Skylight Palace.

Patriarch Arcanum seemed to have quite an unpleasant taste in his mouth. Although it was true that the Youngflame clan had the extremely powerful Youngflame Zhan, who was comparable to Xiamang Zishan…in the world of the Diagram, Youngflame Zhan wasn't as brilliant or as eye-catching as Ji Ning was.

"This Ji Ning…" Patriarch Arcanum ground his teeth.

"The more of a talented monster he is, the more he needs to be eradicated!"

"Hmph. I'll let you act smugly for now. You are nothing more than a genius in a Conclave. There's a Conclave every three centuries. I can't even count how many times a Conclave has gone on…but how many of the winners end up being Celestial Immortals?" Patriarch Arcanum mused silently to himself, "If you can't become a Celestial Immortal, in the end you'll never be able to step out onto the grand stage."

"The Xia Emperor cares deeply about this Conclave, and quite a few Pure Yang True Immortals are watching as well. However, they are doing nothing more than just watching; after all, consider how exalted a status True Immortals have! They are experts of the Three Realms who definitely will not choose apprentices casually. They shouldn't decide to accept Ji Ning as a disciple, right? So long as the True Immortals don't take him as apprentice…once the chance comes, I'll definitely exterminate him."

Patriarch Arcanum felt an extremely intense desire to kill.

He had truly felt love for Youngflame Nong, and he truly wanted to avenge him! In addition, the feud between the Youngflame clan and Ning was by now an enormous one; after all, the Youngflame clan had even sent Deathsworn to assassinate him. If Ji Ning truly did spread his wings one day…how could he not desire to take revenge?

Given how much monstrous talent he had displayed in this Conclave…how could Ji Ning be permitted to continue to grow like this?

He had to be eradicated!

But of course…if a Pure Yang True Immortal really did accept Ji Ning as his disciple, then Patriarch Arcanum would have no choice but to swallow this bitter fruit.

"Generally speaking, the number of disciples a Pure Yang True Immortal accepts can be counted on one hand. They definitely will not casually accept new apprentices." Patriarch Arcanum quietly hoped that none of the True Immortals would suddenly reach out and take on Ji Ning as a disciple. If that happened…he would truly be stupefied.

Ning sat in the lotus position atop the mountain peak.

Suddenly…

"The year has ended. The eighty contestants with the most talismans have successfully passed the trial of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers." The voice of the Emperor of the Grand Xia suddenly rang out in the minds of every single person present within the Diagram.

With it, a rumbling sound could be heard…

Rays of golden light shot out to surround Ji Ning, Xiamang Zishan, Adept Ninedeaths, the Sloppy Daoist, and the rest of the eighty. Some were seated in the lotus position, others were walking around, and still others were sleeping. In short, all of their bodies were surrounded by golden light; clearly, the light was meant to let the people in the outside world be able to clearly see who the eighty were.

Swish, swish, swish!

The eighty were all immediately teleported out of the world of the Diagram.

"The 159 of you who remain must engage in the final battle. Only sixteen of you are permitted to remain alive within the world of the Diagram." The voice of the Emperor of the Grand Xia reverberated in each of their minds…and then all 159 of them were teleported to a vast, spacious grassland.

A grand sealing formation appeared on the grassland, spanning a hundred kilometers.

All 159 of them were locked within the sealing formation.

They all looked towards their fellow contestants.

"Start killing," boomed the voice of the Emperor of the Grand Xia.

Instantly, the 159 competitors within the grand sealing formation began a berserk, final struggle against each other. This was a very small region of just a hundred kilometers; to people like them, who could move a hundred kilometers with a single movement…and with so many of them present…the battle here was exceptionally fierce and miserable. Many people were forced to voluntarily throw our their talismans and give up.

The clouds in front of the main hall of the Skylight Palace.

Ji Ning and the rest of the eighty all appeared atop the cloud. They looked at each other.

"Eh?" Ning quickly saw quite a few familiar faces; Xiamang Zishan, Cangwu Jiu, Adept Blackstone…

"Senior apprentice-brother." Ning saw the Sloppy Daoist as well.

"Junior apprentice-brother Ji Ning." The Sloppy Daoist beamed as well.

"The eighty of you, all stand up!" An attendant wearing a crown spoke out to them coldly: "The other sixteen will appear shortly, at which point the ninety-six of you will jointly follow me to go pay your respects to his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor. This time, some Pure Yang True Immortals of the Three Realms have also arrived to watch. All of you need to know what the rules are; no matter what, you cannot offend or disturb one of the True Immortals."

The crowned attendant had a pale, beardless face. He had an insidiously cold aura, and Ning and the others could tell from the invisible ripples of power that radiated from the man that this person…was most likely a Celestial Immortal.

This caused Ning and the others to all secretly sigh in amazement.

It was possible that not one of the hundred thousand-plus competitors would become a Celestial Immortal…but this attendant was one. This instantly caused Ning and the others to feel an invisible pressure push down upon them.

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Chapter 19 – The Conclave of Immortal Destiny's Awards

After a long period of time passed, another sixteen figures appeared atop the clouds. Most of these sixteen appeared to be in quite the sorry shape, and most of them were heavily wounded.

"Everyone is present." The crowned attendant wave his arm, and instantly a rainbow-colored drizzle descended from the heavens onto Ning and the rest of the ninety-six. The rainbow raindrops quickly merged into their bodies, and the heavily wounded all saw their injuries immediately repaired, leaving them in perfect condition. Even those who had exhausted much of their divine power and elemental ki due to having battled for a long period of time saw their energy replenished. This caused Ning and the others to all feel stunned.

"Remember. The main hall of the Skylight Palace currently has nearly a thousand Celestial Immortals, his Imperial Majesty the Emperor, and Pure Yang True Immortals who have gathered from various places throughout the Three Realms. You absolutely must not be careless. If you anger a true True Immortal who takes your life on the spot, don't say I didn't warn you!" The crowned attendant swept his gaze past the ninety-six, pausing very slightly as he glanced at the Sloppy Daoist, whom he actually revealed a hint of a smile towards.

"Obey my commands. Let's move," the crowned attendant ordered.

He led the way up ahead. Ning and the other ninety-six followed from behind, walking through the clouds. They quickly arrived at a wide, spacious palace hall. The main hall of the Skylight Palace had no ceiling; above it was the infinitely vast firmament.

"So many Celestial Immortals." Ning immediately saw the two rows of Celestial Immortals. They stretched all the way to the deepest parts of the main hall; there truly were nearly a thousand.

"In Stillwater Commandery, I didn't even see a single Celestial Immortal Patriarch, but today I've seen so many. I imagine that the entire Grand Xia Empire must have several thousand Celestial Immortals. No wonder it is said that the emperor of a major world is capable of sitting down and speaking with the Celestial Emperor as equals." Ning could sense the ripples of power coming from around him. The ripples that emanated from a Celestial Immortal, even when they were not actively flaring their power, was still enough to cause a Wanxiang Adept like Ning to feel tremendous pressure.

"Hmph!" Patriarch Arcanum was seated there. Upon seeing Ning walk past him, his long, narrow eyes flashed with a hint of coldness. He let out a cold snort, not disguising his hostility towards Ning at all.

"Halt." The crowned attendant sent a mental message to Ning and the others, who all immediately came to a halt.

Right in front of them, not too far away, were the eight Pure Yang True Immortals and the Emperor of the Grand Xia. Ning and the others could tell that the auras emanating from those eight figures next to the Emperor of the Grand Xia were simply too terrifying. In addition, the tables and Immortal nectar placed before them were completely different from those given the Celestial Immortals. They could immediately tell who these eight were.

"They are all Pure Yang True Immortals!" Ning and the rest of the ninety-six all felt as though they were looking up at unfathomably exalted figures.

"All of you, kneel," the crowned attendant sent mentally.

Whoosh.

Ning and the rest of the ninety-six all fell to their knees, calling out at the same time, "We prostrate ourselves before you, your Imperial Majesty."

The Emperor of the Grand Xia looked downwards towards them, and his gaze along with the gazes of the eight Pure Yang True Immortals all landed upon the Sloppy Daoist. To these nine Pure Yang True Immortals, the only person worth them paying serious attention to was the Sloppy Daoist. This was because he was the disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu.

As for the others?

The nine of them didn't hold them in too much regard. The only reason they paid even a slight bit of attention to them was because the Three Realms was entering turbulent times. During one of the 'normal' Conclaves of Immortal Destiny, they wouldn't even be bothered to come attend and watch, nor would the Emperor of the Grand Xia come to officiate. The officiator would at most record down the most exciting scenes of the battles through a scryer technique and deliver it to some of the major figures of the three realms. On occasion, someone might be lucky and end up becoming an apprentice to one of those True Immortals!

"It would be impressive if even three or four out of these ninety-six became Celestial Immortals. As for Pure Yang True Immortals? If a true expert of the Three Realms really was to emerge from this Conclave, it will probably be this disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu." This was what the Immortal Elder of the Northlands and the others were thinking. This was what even Lu Dongbin believed as well.

For two Pure Yang True Immortals to emerge from a group of ninety-six? That was bit too unrealistic.

"Arise!" The Grand Xia Emperor commanded.

Ning and the other ninety-six all arose, each acting with complete decorum.

The Grand Xia Emperor looked down upon them, then said calmly, "You have all passed the trial of the Brightmoon Diagram of the Mountains and Rivers. You have thus passed the preliminary sorting out process. From today onwards, I will arrange for the ninety-six of you to engage in duels with each other. The losers will be eliminated, while the winners will remain."

"The ninety-six of you will engage in a round of duels. After the first round, forty-eight will remain. All forty-eight of you will each receive an Immortal-ranked magic item."

The voice of the Grand Xia Emperor echoed throughout the entire main hall.

Whooosh.

Everyone below was stunned. Even the near-thousand Celestial Immortals were stunned. All forty-eight would receive an Immortal-ranked magic treasure? In the past, only the top three figures in the Conclave would receive such a treasure. This was more than ten times as extravagant as the past; it represented forty-eight Immortal-ranked treasures!

"The forty-eight will go through two rounds of elimination duels, resulting in twelve remaining. These twelve will each receive five million kilograms of liquefied elemental essence!" The Grand Xia Emperor said calmly.

Utter silence.

The Celestial Immortals were all surprised…and Ning and the rest of the ninety-six were all stunned. Their eyes turned red with desire. Even Ning, despite his tremendous wealth, felt a surge of desire. Five million kilograms…even if Ning sold off all of Youngflame Nong's treasures and everything he had acquired from the Witchriver Immortal Estate, it would still be far less than five million kilograms. Five million kilograms was a sum that would cause even many Celestial Immortals to turn red-eyed with envy. Only the Grand Xia Emperor could afford to be so generous.

"Why is his Imperial Majesty being so generous? Five million kilograms to each person? Twelve people…how many kilograms is that?!"

"His Imperial Majesty has never been so generous when bestowing even the likes of us with gifts."

The Celestial Immortals were speechless.

The Grand Xia Emperor, still speaking in a very calm manner, continued: "The twelve will engage in another series of duels, resulting in six remaining. These six will fight until only three remain! The three final winners…will be permitted to go into the imperial treasure vault of my Grand Xia Dynasty and choose out any divine ability or secret art of their choosing."

Choosing?!

Ning and the others turned berserk with desire. The accumulated knowledge of an entire major world…it vastly surpassed the Dao Repository of the Black-White College by countless times! The techniques which the local Raindragon Guard branches possessed were already enough to cause Ning to turn red-eyed with desire, to say nothing of the main Raindragon Guard headquarters! And the imperial treasure vault of the Grand Xia Dynasty? It most assuredly had even more than the main Raindragon Guard headquarters!

"How can they be allowed to choose?! Divine abilities and secret arts are the foundation of a powerful tribe." Even King Qi, King Yan, and the other Kings were completedly stunned. "That vault is the foundation of our Xiamang clan. How can they be allowed to choose from it as they see fit?! They will definitely choose the strongest techniques. How can the most powerful divine abilities and secret arts we possess be disseminated to outsiders?!"

However, the leader of the Xiamang clan, the Emperor of the Grand Xia, held unquestioned authority and power.

"In addition…per the orders of my venerable master…!" The Grand Xia Emperor spoke in an extremely solemn voice.

All of the Pure Yang True Immortals next to him, be it Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta, Lu Dongbin, or the Immortal Elder of the Northlands, all felt their hearts clench.

"Amongst the final three victors…my venerable master will choose a person to become his own honorary disciple. After said person breaks through to become a Celestial Immortal, said person shall become my venerable master's personal disciple." The Grand Xia Emperor's voice rang out clearly, echoing throughout the entire main hall. All the Celestial Immortals within the main hall fell completely silent. Even the Pure Yang True Immortals had fallen silent.

The eight Pure Yang True Immortals were all in a state of shock; they had no idea that this was going to happen.

"What boldness and spirit! Daofather Crimsonbright truly is bold and spirited; he's actually going to accept a disciple from this Conclave!" Lu Dongbin sighed mentally to himself. "Still…it makes sense. Amongst the tens of major worlds under the command of Daofather Crimsonbright, the world of the Grand Xia is number one in terms of luck and karma. The Three Realms are in a state of upheaval and facing turbulent undercurrents. It has only been a few decades since the collapse of the Six Paths of Reincarnation…it is indeed true that one of the future heroes of the Three Realms will emerge in the first Conclave of Immortal Destiny to be held here after the collapse. It is worth him taking on a new disciple."

"One of them will become the disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright?"

Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta and the others all stared at Ning's group.

"Clearly, Grand Emperor Xuanwu has taken a fancy to that sloppy-looking fatty, and has even taught him his Grand Black Tortoise divine ability. There's no way Daofather Crimsonbright would disgrace himself by trying to steal him! Then of the other 95…which one shall become the disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright?" All of them were now guessing.

"The disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright?"

The eyes of the near-thousand Celestial Immortals below all turned red.

They were the Celestial Immortals of the world of the Grand Xia; thus, they were all naturally under the command of Daofather Crimsonbright! Daofather Crimsonbright had an exalted status far above theirs; he was a major power of the Three Realms who commanded dozens of major worlds. The Celestial Immortals under his command were as numerous as the clouds. Almost all of these Celestial Immortals were his honorary disciples…but most of them had never even said a single word to Daofather Crimsonbright!

They dreamed about becoming a personal disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright, but alas, they had no chance. In fact…not a single one of these near-thousand Celestial Immortals was a personal disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright!

"None of us will become a personal disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright, but one of them will actually become the Daofather's personal disciple."

"That Sloppy Daoist is the personal disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu…as for the other six, one of them will become the personal disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright."

"This is really too insane."

The Celestial Immortals present found it hard to accept this.

A Daofather!

Someone who was capable of controlling a Heavenly Dao. The personal disciples they took on were innately endowed with astonishing potential and comprehension ability; after spending enough effort and paying enough of a price, they would generally all become Celestial Immortals! This was why, even though the likes of Daofather Crimsonbright and Grand Emperor Xuanwu nominally took on weak Wanxiang Disciples as mere 'honorary disciples', in the future it was all but guaranteed that they would be upgraded to 'personal disciples'.

The eight Pure Yang True Immortals were surprised…and the nearly-thousand Celestial Immortals were filled with disbelief and envy. As for Ning and the others, they were completely stunned silly. Most of them didn't even know who the master of the Emperor of the Grand Xia was! But since the Emperor of the Grand Xia was the emperor of this major world, someone capable of casually tossing out dozens of Immortal-ranked magic treasures…how formidable was his master?!

The Grand Xia Emperor was someone who could speak with the Celestial Emperor of the Celestial Court as equals. Then his master…?

The ninety-six could all guess the answer, and they were naturally both stunned and filled with wild desire.

Was this like manna from the heavens?

"The place where you shall engage in your duels shall be atop the clouds outside the palace." The Grand Xia Emperor pointed to the distant clouds outside the hall. Whoosh. Instantly, an enormous grand sealing barrier that was ten kilometers in size appeared atop the cloud. "You shall battle there, within the grand sealing formation. When one side dies or admits defeat, then the battle will conclude."

"The first battle shall be Cangwu Jiu of the Cangwu clan against Dragonmatch of the Myriad Beasts School!" The Grand Xia Emperor continued, "The others can rest off to the side."

"Ji Ning, little Sloppy, come over here." Ning immediately heard someone call out. Turning his head, he saw that it was King Yan. Behind King Yan was his cousin, Yuchi Xiyue, along with Yu Wei. Ning immediately went over. As for the Sloppy Daoist, upon seeing this he immediately followed; they were all of the Black-White College, after all.

The others who had Celestial Immortal Patriarchs of their various schools or clans present all went to the sides of those Celestial Immortals. As for those who didn't have any Celestial Immortals behind them, as long as there was even a hint of a relationship with them, a Celestial Immortal would call them over.

"Zhan, child!" Patriarch Arcanum's long, slanted eyes were filled with savagery. He sent mentally, "This is a chance that rarely comes once in even ten thousand reincarnations. You absolutely must use all your power to fight into the top three! If you can become the disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright, then you shall have done more for our Youngflame clan than anyone else in our entire history. Even the Celestial Immortal Patriarchs of our Youngflame command shall obey your command!"

Youngflame Zhan couldn't help but send mentally, "Who is Daofather Crimsonbright?"

"The teacher of his Imperial Majesty!" Patriarch Arcanum explained, "He is one of the true major powers of the Three Realms…someone who can determine whether our Youngflame clan will flourish or decay with but a single word!"

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Chapter 20 – Daoist Threelives and Daofather Crimsonbright

"If you die here as a result, I guarantee that after reincarnating, you will be reborn into our Youngflame clan once more, and I will take you on as my disciple." Patriarch Arcanum looked at Youngflame Zhan. "Zhan, child, this is a rare chance. You have to seize it!"

Zhan could sense Patriarch Arcanum's ardent desire. He understood how important this was.

"If you succeed…then you might become an expert on the level of his Imperial Majesty, the Emperor," Patriarch Arcanum said eagerly.

Zhan nodded heavily.

"You have reincarnated nine times for the sake of overcome the Celestial Tribulation and becoming a Celestial Immortal. To become a Celestial Immortal is far, far too difficult…the path in front of you is almost guaranteed to be a dead end. Little girl, if you become Daofather Crimsonbright's disciple, you need not fear that you will not be able to become a Celestial Immortal!"

"Jiu, child, you absolutely have the power to make your way into the top three of this Conclave. Although our Cangwu clan has already reached the very pinnacle of power in the Grand Xia Empire, that's our limit; there's no way the imperial clan of the Grand Xia will give us any chance to increase in power any further, unless our Cangwu clan also produces a Pure Yang True Immortal. That, however, is too difficult…but you now have that chance! You have to seize this sort of a chance!"

The various major clans, sects, and schools were all saying these words to the competitors with them.

If previously the Celestial Immortals were quite relaxed, upon learning that Daofather Crimsonbright was going to take on a disciple, all of them were frantic. They even felt hatred…self-hatred for not having personally taught these young geniuses! If they had personally taught them, then the young geniuses on their side would probably be even more powerful.

Unfortunately, they had previously held these so-called geniuses in no regard at all; after all, there were far too many geniuses in the world. It was too late for any regrets.

Ji Ning and Yu Wei were next to each other. They were even holding hands, and the dreamy looks they were giving each other were causing even the nearby Yuchi Xiyue and Sloppy Daoist to get a bit sick of it.

"Junior apprentice-brother, junior apprentice-sister, the two of you…?" The Sloppy Daoist blinked a few times.

"You just found out?" Yuchi Xiyue smirked.

Ji Ning and Yu Wei looked at each other and smiled.

After sharing life and death experiences together during the past year, their hearts had long ago become linked.

"Haha, congratulations and felicitations. The disciples of the Black-White College, in participating in this Conclave, have actually produced a pair of Dao-Companions. This shall be the talk of the world," the Sloppy Daoist laughed.

"Sloppy Daoist, Ji Ning, don't be too relaxed," Yuchi Xiyue quickly warned. "Didn't you hear? The top three have a chance to become accepted by Daofather Crimsonbright as a disciple. This is a chance to ascend to the heavens at one go! Daofather Crimsonbright is one of the true hegemons of the Three Realms, someone who has mastered a Heavenly Dao."

"Right! We have to fight for this chance," the Sloppy Daoist nodded.

Ning nodded as well. At the same time, he mentally asked, "Senior, if I become apprenticed to Daofather Crimsonbright, will he recognize my [Starseizing Hand] and realize the relationship between myself and Daoist Threelives? Will this be trouble?"

Suddenly, a voice rang out in his mind. "Ji Ning, don't worry; Daofather Crimsonbright was born a True God of Primordial Chaos. Like Master, he was born from the primordial chaos itself. They even adventured and faced life and death together; the relationship between them is quite deep. Although he wasn't one of Master's most intimate of friends, they were still on extremely good terms. Even if he knows of the relationship between you and Master, he won't harm you. Someone like Daofather Crimsonbright would not lower himself by acting against you."

"A True God of Primordial Chaos…and they adventured together?" Ning was puzzled. "Daoist Threelives was one of the major powers of the Three Realms, while Daofather Crimsonbright is one as well. Even they need to adventure together and risk their lives?"

"I don't understand this very clearly either; all I know is that there truly are some extremely terrifying places in the Three Realms. Master and some other True Gods of Primordial Chaos have joined forces in the past to fight in those places. All of them are very close to each other, and some of them are in fact individuals who are willing to sacrifice their lives for Master, and vice versa." The giant yellow bear sent, "Don't worry. The True Gods of Primordial Chaos are quite a unified group."

"In addition, it was Daofather Crimsonbright who developed the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] which you train in." The giant yellow bear sighed, then sent, "After countless years have passed, Daofather Crimsonbright has mastered a Heavenly Dao and become a Daofather. If Master is still alive, he should have perhaps mastered a Heavenly Dao as well."

"Daofather Crimsonbright is very good-natured, and all the other True Gods of Primordial Chaos praise him. If you can become his apprentice, you should be able to learn some information regarding Master from him." The giant yellow bear had always wanted to learn if Daoist Threelives was still alive or not.

"Then I will force my way into the top three, or even become number one. I will do my best to make Daofather Crimsonbright choose me as his disciple," Ning sent.

"Right." The giant yellow bear felt eager as well.

King Yan suddenly turned to look at the Sloppy Daoist, then asked mentally, "Little Sloppy, you also want to become the disciple of Daofather Crimsonbright?"

"I naturally have to at least give it a good shot," the Sloppy Daoist said, puzzled. "How can I let a chance like this just slip away? If I miss it, I probably won't have another chance like this for the rest of my life."

"How did you learn the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability?" King Yan asked.

The sloppy, pudgy youth grinned. He knew that upon revealing it, his secrets would be eventually revealed. After all, the Grand Black Tortoise divine ability was simply too easy to recognize. He laughed then sent mentally, "Your Highness, I acquired this Grand Black Tortoise divine ability by luck. While adventuring, I entered a cavern estate and thus inherited a legacy and was taught this grand divine ability."

"Oh." King Yan now understood. Most likely, the Sloppy Daoist had no idea…that his master was Grand Emperor Xuanwu!

In the main hall of the Skylight Palace, the various Celestial Immortals were all chatting and laughing amongst themselves while paying attention to the duels that were going on atop the cloud.

The first round of duels was currently taking place.

In the first battle, Cangwu Jiu battled against Dragonmatch. This was an exceptionally vicious battle, as both were Fiendgod Body Refiners. Dragonmatch was unwilling to admit defeat until almost all of his divine power had been used up. However, his eyes were clearly filled with resentment. As for the Celestial Immortal Patriarchs of the Myriad Beasts School, they couldn't help but shake their heads with resentment and sigh as they saw this. The chance had come and go, just like that.

In the second battle, Adept Woodpass battled against Kindwater Qi. Kindwater Qi immediately used a forbidden technique at the very start, going all out. However, Adept Woodpass actually showed mercy; at a critical moment in the fight, he merely gave Kindwater Qi a heavy wound, not taking his life. The helpless Kindwater Qi was forced to admit defeat.

One battle after another went on, everyone going all out.

"The allure of becoming a Daofather's disciple…who can resist it?" Lu Dongbin shook his head and sighed. Raising his head, he took a swig of wine from his cup. "And yet, how many of them understand…that the disciple of a Daofather is still nothing more than a disciple. The master can bring you into the school, but training is a matter of personal cultivation. The major powers of the Three Realms…they all relied on their own abilities for their achievements."

"Lu Dongbin! You hypocrite, you have two Daofathers standing behind you and even more Daofathers who have provided you guidance, and you're going to sigh and shake your heads at them?" The Immortal Elder of the Northlands was clearly rather displeased. "This old man can't stand your words."

"You're just jealous." Lu Dongbin cast the Immortal Elder a sideways glance out of the corner of his eyes.

"Jealous my ass. This old man is also a Pure Yang True Immortal; if you have true ability, then go become a Daofather! By then, I'd definitely admire you; in fact, I'd even go to your door and obediently listen to you expound on the Dao and treat you as I would a teacher," the Immortal Elder snorted.

"Shameless old fogey. Once I truly do become a Daofather…I might not even be willing to expound on the Dao with you. It'll depend on my mood." After saying these words, even Lu Dongbin himself felt that he was boasting too much; after all, it wasn't so easy for someone to become a Daofather. He didn't even have mastery over a Heavenly Dao yet! He immediately pointed towards the outside and said, "Look, the disciple of Grand Emperor Xuanwu has entered the arena."

In the sixth battle, the Sloppy Daoist fought against Adept Gloomcloud.

Adept Gloomcloud truly was an extraordinary figure; however, there was a quite a bit of difference in power between himself and the Sloppy Daoist. Fortunately, the Sloppy Daoist showed mercy and so Adept Gloomcloud's life was spared. He admitted defeat, then left.

The Grand Xia Emperor, seated atop his imperial throne, stared downwards at his subjects. He said calmly, "The 41th duel shall be between Ji Ning of the Black-White College and Zhuxiang of the Redlotus Sect."

His voice didn't just reverberate within the main hall; his echoing voice, filled with all of his majesty, reverberated within the imperial citadel plaza as well.

The delegates from the 3600 commanderies and four seas all stared into the skies. In the sky above them was a massive mirror, which reflected the scenes of battle between the geniuses within the grand sealing formation atop the cloud.

"Junior apprentice-brother, you have to be careful." Within the palace, the Sloppy Daoist said with a laugh, "This Zhuxiang is a Fiendgod Body Refiner. All Fiendgod Refiners are tough to deal with. Thankfully, the Adept Gloomcloud I ran into just now was a Ki Refiner, which made it a bit easier."

"Ji Ning, be careful." Yu Wei looked at Ning as well.

"Don't worry. I'm planning to go for number one." Ning immediately turned and walked outside.

Right at this moment, a youth who had been seated in the lotus position behind a distant Celestial Immortal also rose to his feet and began to walk towards the outside. This youth seemed quite wanton and dissolute, and gave the impression of being perpetually sleepy. However, he was the number one Holy Child of an extremely large sect, the Redlotus Sect. His power was indeed formidable; previously, the outside world had known very little about him, and he had only become famous during this Conclave.

"They are coming out. Coming out!" Mu Northson stared upwards excitedly. "Quick, look, senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning is coming out."

"Brother Ji Ning's power is formidable; that Zhuxiang of the Redlotus Sect is no match for him at all. Brother Ji Ning is aiming to be number one." Northmont Baiwei was watching with excitement as well; he naturally was pleased upon seeing his good friend ascend farther and farther along this Immortal path.

"Wonderful. My Black-White College is about to suddenly become famous, utterly famous!" Immortal Fivecraze was in extremely high spirits and excited.

"Master." Little Qing's serpentine eyes were flashing with light as well.

The Whitewater Hound's head was also lifted. As he watched, he felt his chest heave with emotions. "Big brother, if you were still alive…how wonderful it would be for you to be here and watch Ji Ning become such a dazzling figure in this Conclave of Immortal Destiny of the Grand Xia Dynasty."

Atop the cloud. Within the grand sealing formation.

Ji Ning and Zhuxiang of the Redlotus Sect were both standing within the grand sealing formation. Zhuxiang was dressed extremely casually. His Daoist robes appeared quite sloppy, and a large portion of his chest was revealed as well. He looked at Ning, appearing to be still half-asleep.

Zhuxiang sighed gently, "I didn't expect to run into you in the very first duel. I heard that you are one of the participants in this Conclave who is the hardest to deal with. In the Diagram, I travelled alongside my fellow disciples. No one was capable of forcing me to unleash my supreme technique…but I didn't expect that I would be forced to do so in this very first battle. You should feel lucky to lose to my supreme technique."

"Zhuxiang." Ning spoke out. "Do you know…what I view you as?"

"What?" Zhuxiang smiled lazily. "A pile of crap? A mere ant? A mighty dragon? Or…?"

"No, no…in my eyes…you are an Immortal-ranked magic treasure," Ning chortled.

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