Read The Desolate Era - Chapter 13 – The Three Realms online free - Novel Full
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 13 – The Three Realms
"Seven died." Although Ji Ning had seized control over the jade green globe as fast as he could, more than seven of the bugbeasts had died during those brief moments of fratricide. Now, only fifty-one remained.
"Stop!" After binding the globe, Ning immediately exerted his control over the bugbeasts and ordered, "Surround those golems!"
"Yes." "Yes." …
The bugbeasts immediately acknowledged the order obediently and began to swarm around the Hellwind Golems, giving them no place to run.
Within the golden gourd.
Arroyo's divine power was being depleted at an incredibly fast rate as the power of those two streams of energy continued to grind down at his body. His soul was linked to the Hellwind Golems outside and so he 'saw' everything that had happened.
"Those who kill others and take their treasures are destined to be killed in turn, one day."
Arroyo emanated a bloody aura because his Dao was a Dao of slaughter. He had always been the winner in his battles, and so he had advanced step by step and left a trail of corpses behind his wake. However, this battle for the Eternal blood was the most important battle in his life. If he won, he would've become a true member of the Aeonians and skyrocketed in status in power. However… he had failed.
"Ahahaha… today, Fukai and I have fallen to your hands. However, how many cultivators shall truly gain eternity? One day, you will fall as well. You will die as well! Ahahaha…" Arroyo laughed wildly, and as he did so the last drops of his divine power were used up. His body was shattered apart, then ground into dust.
Ning could sense the crazed death throes of Arroyo within the gourd, but he remained quite calm.
It was true. The path of cultivation was a very difficult one to tread, and only a few Samsara Daolords existed in the Endless Territories to begin with. Samsara Daolords treaded the line between life and death with each step they took. How few of them would be able to take the final step, achieving the Daomerge and gaining true eternity for themselves?
However, Ning was determined to continue moving forward on his path, motivated by a faint, dim hope that he would never release. He hoped that one day, he would gain the power to reverse the flows of spacetime and bring his wife back to his side. This was the only way he would ever be able to see her again.
"One thing at a time."
The eighteen Hellwind Golems had lost their master. Ning had overwhelmingly superior power and thus was quickly able to forcibly bind them.
"Time to leave." Ning's own godsense was spread out to cover this entire chaosworld. The disturbance caused by his battle against Fukai and Arroyo was quite enormous. Although both sides had kept control over themselves and their power, the Elder Gods and Ancestral Immortals stationed in this chaosworld were still so terrified that all of them had gone into hiding and were unwilling to come out.
Ning stepped forward and through the world-membrane, returning to the primordial chaos outside the world.
Outside the Three Realms. Within the primordial chaos.
A black-robed Ji Ning was standing here within the primordial chaos, staring towards the Three Realms. Although his Primaltwin had stood guard over the Three Realms this entire time, his lifeblood oath made it so that he was completely unable to actually re-join the Three Realms. Only upon reaching Vastheaven Palace and completing the lifeblood oath would Ning be able to return to the Three Realms.
Rumble…
After mastering the 'Sword World', Ning was now capable of seeing through the primordial chaos and into the Three Realms.
The many 'secrets' of the Three Realms were no longer secrets to Ning. Everything was laid bare before his eyes, including its structural underpinnings as well as its core. He could even see an illusory, formless river that flowed through everything within it. This was the River of Destiny.
In truth, all creatures within the Endless Territories had their own destinies, and these destinies were all joined together into a great Sea of Destiny. The Three Realms was just a single chaosworld and thus it had just a single River of Destiny. The countless Rivers of Destiny of the endless chaosworlds within the territories were like countless tiny streams that would join together to form the enormous Sea of Destiny.
"The River of Destiny…" Ning's gaze pierced through the Void and the primordial chaos alike as he stared at the River of Destiny. He could see the countless truesouls that had been submerged within it as well as the destinies of cultivators and mortals alike.
"Father! Mother!"
Ning's heart trembled.
He saw them. Deep within the River of Destiny, there was a pair of truesouls who clung tightly to each other. Those were the truesouls of his father Ji Yichuan and his mother Yuchi Snow. Even though they were dead and their truesouls had been swept into the River of Destiny, they remained by each other's sides.
"Father. Mother. Wait for me just a bit longer. Your son has already become a World God. Soon, I'll head out to Vastheaven Palace. Once I reach Vastheaven Palace and complete my lifeblood oath, I'll be able to re-enter the Three Realms and draw your truesouls out from the River of Destiny." Ning's heart was shaking.
It was clearly something that he could do with ease, with but the wave of a hand. Alas, he knew that if he truly stretched so much as a finger into the Three Realms, his true body and his Primaltwin would both be attacked and destroyed by the lifeblood oath he had sworn.
"I'll wait a bit longer," Ning murmured softly.
Whoosh.
A figure suddenly appeared off in the distance. It was a white-haired, white-bearded old man dressed in Daoist robes.
"Master." Ning looked at him.
"Ji Ning." Subhuti smiled. Just now, he had gone to Ning's estate within the primordial chaos but had been unable to find Ning. He knew that his disciple had to have come to this place, as this was where his disciple would often go to stare at the Three Realms. Alas, he could see everything happening within it but couldn't take so much as a single step within it.
"You-…" Subhuti's face suddenly changed as he stared at Ning. He took a careful look, then a second, then a third.
"The World level?" Subhuti's voice was quavering slightly.
"Yes." Ning nodded. "I broke through."
An excited look was now on Subhuti's face. "That's wonderful. I've been worrying about you ever since you started your journeys into the Endless Territories. Now that you have at least reached the World level, things will be much easier for you."
"Mm." Ning nodded.
"However, as the saying goes there's always a taller mountain. Even though you have reached the World level, disciple, you must not be overconfident and brash. You don't have many supporters or helpers in the Endless Territories. You'll have to rely on yourself for everything. Those of us in the Three Realms won't be of much aid either. You have to be careful," Subhuti said. Although he didn't know what Ning had experienced thus far, the Three Realms did know a bit about the Badlands Territory and knew that it was a place of constant struggles and battles between cultivators.
For Ning to emerge unscathed and at an even higher level of power meant that he absolutely had to have experienced and survived many of those life-and-death battles.
"Don't worry. Your disciple isn't so foolish as to think himself invincible." Ning laughed. "I'm still dreaming of one day meeting with Mother Nuwa, you know."
"Have you heard any news of Mother Nuwa in the territories outside?" Subhuti immediately asked. All of the first-generation Fiendgods who were born from the primordial chaos were filled with tremendous respect and veneration towards Mother Nuwa. She had reached the World level back when she was in the Three Realms!
"I have not. I don't have any news about her at all. In fact, there have been no new World Gods in the Badlands Territory who seem even remotely similar to her." Ning shook his head.
"Ugh…" Subhuti shook his head as well.
"Oh, right. Master, I'd like to trouble you to help me with something. Please send word to the Three Realms right away that I am intending to transmit certain techniques, divine abilities, and secret arts to our fellow Daoists of the Three Realms."
"Transmit?" Subhuti was surprised.
"Right. In the past, I wasn't able to do so. Now that I've become a World God myself, things have changed," Ning said. In recent years, he had killed quite a few enemies and seized their treasures, but it was rare for cultivators at this level to carry cultivation manuals on them. Everything was firmly imprinted into their minds. The only reason World God Northrest had left behind so many manuals was because he was planning to bring up a successor in the future.
Ning was now far more powerful than World God Northrest had been, but he simply hadn't spent enough time cultivating and adventuring. The number of transmittable techniques he had acquired during his adventures could be counted on one hand. Although he could purchase certain techniques from the Badlands Everworld, he still wouldn't be able to bring them back to the Three Realms right away. He'd have to first memorize and master them, then write them down again. This would take an extremely long period of time.
Ning had correctly predicted that by the time he finished, he would probably already have reached the World level. World God Northrest had already given Ning many techniques which he could transmit to others upon him becoming a World God himself. Now, Ning had full and free control over them.
"Good, good, good!" Subhuti said excitedly, "This is wonderful. With these powerful techniques by our side, the Three Realms might give birth to new World Gods and Chaos Immortals in the future."
"Right." Ning nodded.
Ning had the feeling that the Three Realms was not an ordinary place.
It was in the Three Realms that Daoist Three Purities found the incredibly valuable Nine Chaos Seals.
The Three Realms had also given birth to absolutely dazzling figures such as Nuwa and Houyi, all of whom had created their own techniques since there was no one present to teach and guide them.
"After I transmit these techniques to them, I need to go exploring the primordial chaos around the Three Realms and see if I can find the original Nine Chaos Seals," Ning mused. Many of his fellow disciples were actually incredibly talented; they simply had never gotten access to techniques that could guide them to becoming World-level cultivators.
The Three Realms was about to undergo a true golden age of cultivation and explode in power. Ning was very eager to see this happen. If he was the only person capable of protecting the Three Realms, what would happen to it if something happened to him? If the Three Realms had numerous experts on Ning's level within it, it would become a truly safe place for its denizens.
A flying ship was sailing through the primordial chaos. Ning and the Flamefairy were both seated within the ship, staring out towards the primordial chaos.
"Master, were you waylaid by Fukai and Arroyo?" Su Youji immediately asked.
"I was." Ning nodded.
"How did it go?" Su Youji asked. She didn't know if Ning had fled on his own or if he had won that battle.
"I'm sitting right here before you. How do you think it went?" Ning smiled. "They lost. Both died on the battlefield."
Su Youji wasn't able to take part in that battle but had been quite worried. She knew that Fukai and Arroyo were both very powerful figures, especially Arroyo. He not only was a transcendent World God, he was also surrounded by a bloodthirsty aura that testified to his prowess in battle. Given the many treasures that they had… she couldn't help but worry. Her life was bound to Ji Ning's, after all. If Ji Ning died, she would be at the mercy of his killer.
"Where shall we go next?" Su Youji asked.
"Let us return to the Badlands Court first. Later, we'll leave." Ning stared at the outside world. His first priority was to return to the Badlands Court and get rid of the Eternal blood.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 14 – Sell It To Me
They flew aboard the boat towards a spacetime transfer array, eventually making their way back to the Badlands Everworld.
"There it is. The Badlands Court."
Ji Ning and Su Youji were walking atop the waves as they advanced. Soon, they reached the island located in the center of the lake, the island which held the Badlands Court. In front of the island was a crimson-haired man dressed in loose robes who smiled at the two of them. "Brother Darknorth, congratulations for becoming a World-level cultivator. Oh, the Flamefairy broke through as well? It seems this recent trip has been tremendously beneficial to the two of you."
"Brother Qichang, why are you here?" Ning was surprised.
"Master instructed me to stay here and wait for you." The crimson-haired man laughed. "Come, I'll take you to meet with Master."
Ning was secretly amazed. Daolord Badlands truly lived up to his reputation for divination. Indeed, Ning was planning to ask him to help dispose of the Eternal blood. Somehow, the Daolord knew about it even before Ning asked to speak with him, thus choosing to send a disciple out to come greet him…
"Youji, you can go to the Water Curtain Home for now," Ning instructed.
"Alright." Su Youji departed obediently.
"Please lead the way, brother Qichang." Ning and the crimson-haired man advanced side-by-side. The Badlands Court was laid out in a truly intricate way and filled with many formations. If no one was around to guide him, Ning truly wouldn't have been able to locate Daolord Badlands' residence.
The two quickly arrived at a quiet, secluded courtyard.
The courtyard was quite simple and unadorned. Daolord Badlands was relaxing in the lotus position, a single flask of wine on the table in front of him.
"Master, I've brought Darknorth as instructed," the crimson-haired man said respectfully.
"You can leave now," Daolord Badlands instructed.
The crimson-haired man acknowledged the order, then respectfully departed. Daolord Badlands turned his gaze towards Ning. A hint of a smile on his face, he pointed at the other seat and said, "Sit."
"Thank you, Daolord." Ning sat down in the lotus position before Daolord Badlands.
"You've reached the World level? Old brother Solesky will be quite happy to hear this." Daolord Badlands laughed. "This morning, I could sense that something was going to happen. I did some careful Numerancy and divined that there is something that you wish me to help you with."
"Yes." Ning immediately nodded. "There is indeed something. This junior was fortunate enough to acquire a treasure within the Allgod Estate known as the 'divine blood of the Eternal'."
"The Eternal blood?" A shocked look appeared on Daolord Badlands' face.
Although he was skilled in the art of Numerancy, he wasn't all-knowing. Divining the future through Numerancy was actually quite difficult and there would be many things that were left unclear. Using Numerancy to divine the past was actually much easier, because it involved things that had already happened. Things in the future had obviously yet to happen, and thus almost anything was possible! Future Numerancy was generally only capable of calculating out some particularly major events.
Ji Ning was specifically coming to ask Daolord Badlands for help, and so Daolord Badlands had been able to sense it. Just a simple bit of Numerancy was enough to tell him that Ji Ning was coming to ask for his assistance. By then, Ji Ning had already reached the Badlands Everworld and was heading towards the Badlands Court, giving this bit of Numerancy an extremely highly credible interval.
"Is it the Eternal blood of Emperor Melobo?" Daolord Badlands asked.
"Yes." Ning nodded. "I hear that the Aeonians would do anything to get their hands on this Eternal blood."
"Of course they would!" Daolord Badlands' eyes lit up as he smiled. "That drop of Eternal blood represents half of the life energy and vitality of Emperor Melobo. It took him forever to recover from that loss. That drop of Eternal blood is uncalculably valuable to them, and it's something which will never appear on the open market. It is more valuable and alluring to the Aeonians than you could ever imagine."
Ning said, "I heard the spirits of the Allgod Estate say the same, which is why I'm worrying about the proper way to dispose of this Eternal blood. That's why I came to ask you for help."
"Right. The simplest solution is to offer it to the Dao Alliance." Daolord Badlands chuckled. "But I have another idea, if you are interested."
"Pray tell, Daolord." Ning looked at him.
"Sell your drop of Eternal blood to me," Daolord Badlands said.
"Oh?" Ning was slightly startled.
"If you offer it to the Dao Alliance, they'll probably give you two million cubes of chaos nectar as well as grant you immediate entrance into the alliance. If you sell it to me… although I won't be able to bring you into the Dao Alliance, I'd be willing to give you three million cubes! What's more, given how strong you are, you'll definitely be granted entry into the Dao Alliance in the future." Daolord Badlands continued, "If there are any techniques or treasures that you want, just tell me and we can deduct it from that balance."
Daolord Badlands truly wished to take possession of that drop of Eternal blood.
The Dao Alliance itself wouldn't have much use for it, but it was still an incredibly rare and valuable item! Whenever a drop of concentrated Eternal blood appeared in the Dao Alliance, it would immediately be purchased by its most powerful Samsara Daolords or Eternal Emperors. Someone like Daolord Badlands wouldn't even have a chance! Once those powerful Samsara Daolords acquired the blood, they would analyze it and research it to gain insights from it.
It must be understood that this drop of Eternal blood was the concentrated blood essence distilled from more than half the blood and flesh of a mighty Eternal Emperor of the Aeonian race. This had represented an enormous drop in Emperor Melobo's power. No Eternal Emperor would be willing to make such a sacrifice… and the number of Aeonian Emperor's could be counted on one hand to begin with!
Thus, the 'set' price of two million cubes which the Dao Alliance was willing to pay was an incredibly low price.
Daolord Badlands naturally grew desirous of this drop of blood…
Daolord Badlands was actually a dazzling talented Daolord as well. As the Goldeye Golem had put it, if he was able to reach the Verge of the Daomerge then he would become a terrifyingly powerful figure who would be as strong as Daolord Allgod had been.
Dazzling talents such as him naturally were filled with tremendous ambitions! In the past, he didn't have that much wealth; even if you placed that drop of Eternal blood in front of him, he wouldn't pay it much attention. But in order to get his assistance, Daolord Solesky had prepared a gift of tremendous value for him. Daolord Solesky was a Palace Lord of Vastheaven Palace and had been alive for an extremely long period of time, accumulating enormous amounts of wealth. He had offered roughly twenty million cubes of chaos nectar for Daolord Badlands' assistance!
Some of those treasures were meant for Daolord Badlands to rebuild his avatar.
As for the other treasures?
Daolord Badlands actually had numerous plans for them, but now that Ji Ning had brought a drop of Eternal blood to his doorstep, he suddenly changed his plans.
"Perhaps some of my children will be able to draw out the power of the Aeonians from within that drop," Daolord Badlands mused to himself. "My divinations indicate that there is a better than 20% chance of them succeeding in this endeavor. First, Daolord Solesky came bearing fabulous gifts. Now, my young friend Ji Ning is asking me to help him deal with this Eternal blood. This is a karmic blessing which destiny has bestowed upon me. I have to seize it!"
"What do you think?" Daolord Badlands looked at Ning.
"I'm in no rush to join the Dao Alliance. All I want to do is get rid of this Eternal blood as soon as I can," Ning said with a laugh. "Selling it to the Dao Alliance, selling it to you… it's all the same to me."
"Good." Daolord Badlands laughed. "Three million cubes of chaos nectar. The average networth of most powerful Daolords is roughly in this range. My young friend Ji Ning, you must make sure not to waste this tremendous blessing. Tell me, which treasures, techniques, and divine abilities do you desire? I'll help you find them and buy them. But of course, if all you want is chaos nectar then I can provide that as well!"
What would be the point of acquiring that much chaos nectar? Was he supposed to eat it like food? The best solution was for Ning to use it to help himself grow more powerful as soon as possible.
"I want to acquire the final part of a divine ability," Ning said. "This divine ability is known as the [Golden Idol]."
"The protective divine ability, [Golden Idol]?" Daolord Badlands nodded. "That won't be too hard. I can buy it for you from the Dao Alliance. Do you want it for yourself or do you wish to be able to teach it to others? If you wish to be able to teach it to others, the price will be dozens of times higher."
"I'll use it for myself." Ning wasn't going to waste his money like that.
"This divine ability is quite powerful. It can make your body as tough as a top-grade Dao weapon. Abilities on this level are fairly rare. I'll help you buy it, but it'll take two hundred thousand cubes of chaos nectar."
Ning was secretly speechless. This was even more valuable than a Pseudo Samsara Pill!
If it cost that much just for him to train in, then wouldn't that mean a version he could transmit to others would cost several million cubes? No wonder that not even Vastheaven Palace had access to such a wonderful technique. Large clans and sects all had many expenses they had to pay. World God Northrest switched to training in the [Golden Idol] after acquiring it, but he had only gained access to the upper portion and the middle portion.
"Generally speaking, only Samsara Daolords need to have bodies that are as tough as top-grade Dao weapons," Daolord Badlands said. "Honestly, I don't know why you are in such a rush to buy it. Still, you now are worth more than three million cubes of chaos nectar. Buying it won't cause you much trouble."
Ning smiled. He might not be a Daolord, but he did have a body that was comparable to a Daolord's body!
"What else do you need?" Daolord Badlands asked.
"I've heard of an Eternal treasure known as the Elementum Waterflame Gourd," Ning said. "I wish to buy it."
"Right, right! That is indeed a good treasure. It is fairly cheap, but extremely useul for World-level experts." Daolord Badlands immediately nodded. "This gourd will require roughly half a million cubes."
The Elementum Waterflame Gourd…
It held both Firecloud Lightning as well as Watersmoke Lightning within it. Both were considered types of Dao-level lightning! These were two of the nine types of Dao lightning which Ning would need in order to train in the secret art of lightning known as [Novessence Thunder] technique. By buying this item, Ning would be able to use these two types of lightning for now as well as use them to train in the [Novessence Thunder] later. Two birds with one stone!
Dao lightning was extremely expensive because capturing it was incredibly difficult. A single type of Dao lightning would generally be worth a minimum of two hundred thousand cubes of chaos nectar. Firecloud Lightning and Watersmoke Lightning were two fairly common types of Dao lightning. There were certain rare types of Dao lightning that simply couldn't be found on the market at all. Even Daolord Allgod had only found nine types of lightning that were suitable for his usage!
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 15 – Violetjewel's Background
Ji Ning had long ago decided that he was going to train in the [Novessence Thunder] secret art. Alas, while he was in the Allgod Estate he didn't even have access to nine types of chaos lightning, and so he was in no rush to start learning the technique just yet. After mastering nine types of chaos lightning, he would then test out mastering the nine types of Dao lightning with this technique.
However, according to the secret art's descriptions, only World-level cultivators could train in chaos lightning while only Samsara Daolords could train in Dao lightning. Thus, for now Ning simply purchased two of the relevant types of Dao lightning. In all honesty, he probably couldn't afford purchasing all nine types; even Daolord Allgod was only able to get nine!
"The lower portion of the [Golden Idol] and the Elementum Waterflame Gourd. That's not even a million cubes." Daolord Badlands looked at Ning. "Need any other treasures?"
"The Mirrorsnow Paintings. I need the second and the fourth paintings. Would I be able to buy these two?" Ning asked.
Daolord Badlands glanced at Ning, then chuckled. "It seems this trip to the Allgod Estate truly was a lucky one for you. The Mirrorsnow Paintings hold the legacy of Emperor Mirrorsnow within them. Although he had released a total of forty of these paintings into the Endless Territories, there's simply far too many cultivators. How about this? I'll ask the Dao Alliance and see if anyone is willing to sell those two paintings. However, I can't guarantee they'll be available."
"If we can get it, let's give it a shot." Ning didn't try to force it.
"Anything else?" Daolord Badlands asked.
"Daolord, please take a look at this." Ning drew Violetjewel from its sheath on his back. Given that the two were discussing a business deal worth three million cubes of chaos nectar, a single Eternal weapon truly didn't mean much. Some Eternal weapons were worth as little as ten thousand cubes, while valuable ones were still generally worth just a few hundred thousand cubes. Eternal weapons worth over a million cubes were very rare.
"This sword has been by my side for an extended period of time. Its previous owner was big brother Northrest, who named it 'Violetjewel'." Ning continued, "I wish to understand where it came from and want to see if I can get five more matching sets of this Eternal sword."
Just so. Since he had three million cubes of chaos nectar to use up, Ning wanted to ensure that he'd be able to wield six Eternal weapons in any future battles! This would allow his attack power to increase dramatically, and he'd feel confident in battling even an enemy Daolord.
This was all because Ning's [Nameless] sword-art was a technique that allowed for an airtight defense. If Ning used all six swords to focus on defense, then so long as the opponent wasn't overwhelmingly more powerful Ning would still be able to survive.
"Oh? Violetjewel?" Daolord Badlands accepted the sword, then gently stroked its blade. As he did so, Ning released his control over the sword-intent hidden within Violetjewel's quintessence core, letting its savage, bloodthirsty aura surge outwards.
"Just so. It truly is Violetjewel." Daolord Badlands nodded.
"It 'truly is?'" Ning was puzzled.
"This would be considered a middle-grade Eternal weapon." Daolord Badlands laughed. "Once you become a Daolord of the First Step, you'll be able to unleash the full power of this Eternal weapon. For now, it'll be more than enough for you to wield while you remain within the World level."
Ning nodded. In truth, low-grade, middle-grade, high-grade, and top-grade Eternal weapons were all the same to Ning. If the sword-intent contained within an Eternal weapon's quintessence core was too powerful, Ning wouldn't be able to make much use of it. Just as Daolord Badlands said, Ning would probably only be able to fully unleash the power of Violetjewel when he became a Daolord of the First Step.
Even if Ning was given a top-grade Eternal sword, he wouldn't be able to unleash much of its power for now.
"You said that this sword's previous owner called it 'Violetjewel'. This wasn't a name he chose at random," Daolord Badlands said. "This is the name given to the sword by the Eternal Emperor who forged it."
"It was forged by an Eternal Emperor?" Ning was quite curious.
"Long, long ago, that Eternal Emperor was an Emperor of the Dao Alliance! However, he ended up choosing to venture into the Endless Dark long ago. His name was Emperor Violetmount. Before he left the Endless Territories and entered the Endless Dark, he spent an extremely long period of time to create a total of ninety-nine middle-grade Eternal weapons which he named Violetjewel, nine top-grade Eternal weapons which he named Bloodpeak, and a terrifying weapon infused with all of his insights into the Dao of the Sword which he named the 'Violetmount Sword'."
Ning was speechless upon hearing this. Ninety-nine Violetjewel swords? Nine Bloodpeak swords? A Violetmount sword?
This was all done by Emperor Violetmount?
"So you wish to procure five more Violetjewels?" Daolord Badlands asked.
"Yes, I would ideally like to buy five of them." Ning nodded.
Daolord Badlands nodded. "Although Emperor Violetmount originally created ninety-nine of them, some of them ended up being lost over the course of many years. Others are currently being used by other cultivators. Thus, buying five will be quite difficult. Still, I'll ask the Dao Alliance to help out. Their power is spread throughout the entire Endless Territories; they just might be able to locate a few of these swords."
Daolord Badlands looked at Ning. "I have to warn you in advance, this situation is completely different from the situation we saw in the treasure auction. Treasures in that auction all start at a very low reserve price, and even the final price for each item won't be particularly high. Since you are actively seeking out these specific items, they will definitely cost you much more."
Ning understood this quite well. The treasure auctions were all fairly cheap; buying treasures at the normal 'listed' price in the outside world would generally cost significantly more! As for someone like Ning who was actively looking for very specific items, the price would definitely be even higher.
"How high would it be?" Ning asked.
"A single Violetjewel sword generally goes for just a hundred thousand cubes or so. However, since you are actively seeking out this specific sword it'll probably take a hundred and fifty thousand, maybe even two hundred thousand," Daolord Badlands said.
"Any price below two hundred thousand is acceptable," Ning said. He was no fool. If the price was too high, it really wouldn't be worth it.
It must be understood that middle-grade Eternal weapons would generally go for anywhere from thirty thousand to sixty thousand cubes of chaos nectar in the treasure auctions. The normal list price, however, would be around a hundred thousand cubes.
Since Ning was actively seeking out these specific swords, the price could rise to as much as two hundred thousand cubes. In all honesty, this was quite a high price. Two hundred thousand cubes would be enough to easily buy a high-grade Eternal weapon during a treasure auction. If you were lucky, you might even be able to snag a cheap top-grade Eternal weapon!
"Anything else?" Daolord Badlands asked.
"Oh, that's plenty. I don't need anything else for now," Ning said.
"Good. How about this? Give me a bit of time, roughly half a year or so, and I'll give you a million cubes of chaos nectar for you to use it as you see fit," Daolord Badlands said. "As for the treasures you are seeking, since I'll need to ask the Dao Alliance to help out it'll probably take a good deal longer. If we are lucky, it might take just four or five years. If we are unlucky, it might take a few decades. If there are any leftover cubes of chaos nectar, I'll hand that over to you as well."
"Thank you, Daolord," Ning said.
There were two reasons Ning had chosen to ask Daolord Badlands for help. The first was that Daolord Badlands was on extremely good terms with Daolord Solesky. The second was that the formation-spirits of the Allgod Estate had suggested that Ning go seek him out. Daolord Badlands was a dazzlingly talented figure who had an extremely resolute Dao-heart. Even if he lost all of his treasures, he wouldn't throw away his own principles or his own path.
Daolord Badlands was extremely skilled in divination, which meant that it was actually quite rare for him to go out adventuring. His style of cultivation was quite different from that of most other Samsara Daolords. This was why he didn't have that much treasure. In truth, it was all thanks to Daolord Solesky's gift of twenty million cubes worth of treasure that he had become so wealthy.
Even so, he didn't have much actual chaos nectar. What he had was a large collection of random treasures and materials, which was why he told Ning he would need half a year for the first million cubes of chaos nectar.
Whoosh.
Ning walked back to the Water Curtain Home, his heart filled with emotions. "Eternal weapons are considered incomparably valuable to World-level cultivators, but they are nothing special to Samsara Daolords. I never would've thought that there would be ninety-nine copies of Violetjewel."
"Once I get those treasures, I'll be much more powerful than I am right now." Ning always felt as though he should do his best to convert his chaos nectar into treasures as soon as possible. Even if he eventually outgrew them in the future, he could still convert them back into chaos nectar by selling them.
"Master." Su Youji had returned to the Water Curtain Home earlier. She now came running out towards Ning.
"Youji, today we shall rest. Tomorrow, we are going to Waveshift City," Ning said.
"Waveshift City?" Su Youji immediately asked, "Why are we going there?"
"You broke through to the World level. We need to find you some suitable treasures!" Ning laughed. "Spend some time picking what you like once we get there."
"Alright." Su Youji's eyes lit up as she nodded repeatedly. Generally speaking, the master was responsible for outfitting his retainers with treasures. Still, most masters were quite stingy.
Ning, however, wasn't stingy. And yet, he simply wouldn't be able to afford giving Su Youji a set of Eternal weapons! Su Youji was a Chaos Immortal, and Chaos Immortals generally relied on sets of many powerful weapons. If every weapon in a set was an Eternal weapon, the cost of the set would be utterly astronomical.
"Waveshift City." Another reason why Ning was heading to Waveshift City was because he needed to buy those nine types of chaos lightning. That way, he'd be able to start with the [Novessence Thunder] secret art.
The very next day, Ning and Su Youji set off for Waveshift City and went on a huge shopping spree. Fukai and Arroyo had both left behind quite a bit of chaos nectar and many treasures, giving Ning quite a bit of spare cash. Soon, the two had purchased everything they wanted, including the nine types of chaos lightning which Ning had been searching for.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 16 – Novessence Thunder
Within the estate-world.
Ji Ning was seated in the lotus position atop the sandy beaches of an oceanic island. Next to him was a black gourd and four other gourds. The black gourd was the Pentabolt Gourd while the other four gourds were ordinary gourds that each held a different type of chaos lightning.
"The five types of chaos lightning within the Pentabolt Gourd are five types that I can use. I have all nine types of chaos lightning and am ready to start." Ning began to mentally prepare the [Novessence Thunder] secret art.
Ning began to activate his Immortal energy, sending it into one of the gourds. This gourd was filled with a streak of black lightning that radiated an aura of both insidious coldness and extraordinary ruthlessness.
Ning's Immortal energy was guided by the [Novessence Thunder] technique to form a very unique web of energy that began to envelop the chaos lightning. Chaos lightning generally wasn't capable of defeating even weak World-level cultivators; they were only capable of dominating cultivators below that level! Given how pure Ning's Immortal energy was thanks to his body being formed by the merging of seventeen clones, he was able to easily seize control over that streak of chaos lightning.
"Come here." The web of Immortal energy completely surrounded that streak of insidious black lightning. No matter how much it struggled or how it flared its power, the web of Immortal energy merely expanded and contracted alongside it. The web was extremely tough and tenacious, giving the black lightning no place to run at all.
"Long ago, I risked my life and lost multiple clones in order to tame the Ninehorn Lightning Serpent… but now, compared to this technique of Daolord Allgod's, that technique was unfathomably weak and meaningless." Ning couldn't help but sigh. Daolord Allgod's technique was like an incredibly wise fisherman, with the lightning being his fish; no matter how the lightning struggled or writhed, it was completely unable to escape the control of the technique.
However, merely seizing control over the lightning was just the simplest starting point for this secret art.
Whoosh.
The web of Immortal energy squeezed around the streak of black lightning as it dragged it into Ning's body. Soon, it was pulled into the realm of chaos which now existed inside of Ning.
The Jindan chaos region was a blurry, hazy region. At its very center stood a luxuriously flourishing Dao-tree which stood more than sixty thousand meters tall.
"Essence of lightning… take form!" Immortal energy began to ripple through the chaos 'mud' that existed in a corner of this chaos region, taking shape and transforming into an enormous formation. A streak of black lightning thundered down angrily upon the formation. Boom! The formation was instantly filled with Immortal energy that fed hungrily upon the power of the black lightning.
Rumble…
Countless streaks of black lightning began to flicker throughout the rune-patterns that covered the entire massive formation.
"One of the lightning essences has been contained, for now at least." Ning nodded to himself. Establishing an essence of lightning was actually quite simple; the hardest part would be actually merging them to manifest the [Novessence Thunder] secret art. He would have to merge all nine types of chaos lightning in a manner similar to merging many ingredients into the production of a pill. Only then would the complicated secret art become usable. This would be thousands of times more difficult than simply forming the lightning essence was!
Ning himself was secretly nervous about this. Would he be able to succeed? Daolord Allgod was a master of alchemy and artificing, a truly peerless expert in these areas. Ning, however, wasn't skilled in either regard.
"Next." Ning once again reached out, seizing control over another one of the eight types of chaos lightning after another. His vast Jindan chaos region quickly became filled with eight more types of lightning essence.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The nine types of lightning essence crackled and clashed against each other, each holding different types of lightning.
"The easiest part is done. Next comes the hard part, where I actually forge the [Novessence Thunder] secret art. Let's see if I can do this." Ning felt a sense of pressure, even though this was a secret art 'merely' formed by chaos lightning; it would be much simpler than doing the same with Dao lightning.
Using nine types of Dao lightning to form the secret art would be much more complicated. Still, Ning understood that even 'merely' using nine types of chaos lightning would be incredibly hard for the vast majority of World-level cultivators.
"Begin."
Ning's pure Immortal energy poured into the nine types of lightning essence. The process of converting the chaos lightning into lightning essence had already caused the explosive, raging power of the lightning to be tamed by the formation. This method was far superior to the technique Ning had used to tame the Ninehorn Lightning Serpent long ago.
Crackle. Hiss. Pop. The nine streaks of lightning began to fly into the air under the control of Ning's Immortal energy. They wrapped around each other, intertwining like the limbs of lovers and beginning to join together…
BOOM!
The nine types of lightning suddenly broke apart and dispersed.
"I failed." Ning shook his head. "According to the instructions, I have to be able to merge all nine types of lightning into one in order to form the seed of this secret art. Afterwards, with the passage of time, I'll be able to use the nine types of chaos lightning through this seed in unleashing this secret art." Ning felt a headache coming. "Although I've tamed all nine streaks of lightning, I still need to perfectly match them together in a specific format that requires tens of thousands of steps. The lightning is simply too explosive and violent. The slightest mistake will result in failure."
Ning's Immortal energy was sufficiently pure, and his control over his energy was sufficiently strong. Given that his soul was being reinforced by the azureflower mist energy, it was similarly strong enough for him to maintain incredible control over the lightning. And yet, he still failed in the end. This was precisely because Daolord Allgod's secret art was simply too detailed and complicated.
"I'll try it again."
Ning tried again and again to form the seed to this secret art. If he could succeed just once, the seed would be permanently formed and he wouldn't need to spend all this energy and effort in the future. He'd be able to simply use this seed to activate the secret art!
Alas… it truly was difficult! Ning tried more than a hundred times, failing each time. Even his powerful soul was beginning to feel exhausted by the process. There was one time where he very nearly succeeded, but he ended up failing at one of the final steps.
"I'm going to rest for a while," Ning mumbled to himself. "Simply merging nine types of chaos lightning is already incredibly difficult. How hard will it be for me to merge Dao lightning?"
"Hey…" Just as Ning was about to take a break, he suddenly noticed something within his body. "The azureflower mist energy can convert Immortal energy, divine power, and heartforce." Ning mused to himself, "Although there's no way for it to leave my body, it can easily enter the Jindan chaos region inside of me. If Immortal energy can be used to control the lightning, can the azureflower mist energy be used to do the same?"
The azureflower mist energy was far stronger than the Immortal energy!
"I'll give it a try." Ning immediately felt a hint of eagerness. Previously, he had dispersed his azureflower mist energy and sent it throughout his body, with a little residing within the Jindan chaos region as well. Now, Ning sent more and more of the azureflower mist energy into the Jindan chaos region, where it began to fly straight towards the nine types of lightning essence that crackled at the margins of the region.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
The nine types of azureflower mist energy were like nine roving dragons that burrowed straight into the nine types of lightning essence. Upon the energy entering the lightning essence, Ning was ready to give controlling them a shot.
Instantly, the nine types of chaos lightning began to fly upwards. It was extremely easy, and the chaos lightning flew about in an extremely obedient manner.
"Haha, it actually works. Using the azureflower mist energy to control the lightning is a hundred times easier than using my Immortal energy." Ning was delighted. If previously it had been as difficult as an ordinary man wielding a gigantic greataxe, Ning now felt like he was an ordinary man who was wielding a pair of chopsticks. It was so easy!
The nine streaks of lightning coiled around in the air, mixing together in a perfect manner and transforming to become something else.
Slowly…
The nine streaks of lightning merged into eight streaks, then seven…
In the end, only one streak of lightning was left. It was a streak of crimson-gold lightning that radiated an aura of power that was so great that Ning trembled in fear. It vastly surpassed any other type of chaos lightning in power, and Ning felt certain that most likely even Dao lightning wouldn't be much stronger than it.
Boom!
The crimson-gold lightning suddenly slammed downwards, smashing against the 'mud' of the formation. Instantly, the formation drew in the power of the crimson-gold lightning. It seemed to come to life as an enormous seal took form atop it.
"The seed of the secret art has taken shape." Ning let out a sigh of relief.
In the future, the nine types of lightning essence would simply release their power and allow it to be converted by the seed, giving birth to that terrifying crimson-gold lightning.
"The [Novessence Thunder] formed by chaos lightning should be able to kill any master-class World God with a single blast." After getting a good sense for how powerful the crimson-gold lightning was, he felt even more convinced of Daolord Allgod's might.
However, given how strong Ning currently was, the [Novessence Thunder] would primarily be used as a 'domain' type effect, causing a large amount of lightning to surround and trap his foes. It must be understood that a domain that was capable of easily slaying master-class World Gods would serve as a terrifyingly strong constraint upon others!
When two individuals were on the same general level of power, for one side to be constrained in some manner would have a huge impact on a battle between them.
Daolord Allgod himself had used his nine secret arts at the same time to trap and constrain his foes. As a result, even someone like Emperor Melobo had been forced to flee. Emperor Melobo had damn near died, and in the end he had lost an enormous amount of flesh and blood which Dalord Allgod had refined into that drop of Eternal blood.
Ning was now in a superb mood after having successfully forged the [Novessence Thunder].
Two short months later, Daolord Badlands returned with a million cubes of chaos nectar. Although Ning had mentally prepared himself to receive such a vast fortune, his heart still shook when it actually entered his hands. For such a sum of chaos nectar to actually before him was still quite a stunning sight.
For most Elder Gods and Ancestral Immortals, a mere hundred bottles was already an incredible fortune.
For World-level cultivators, a hundred cubes was a shocking sum.
A million cubes was enough to cause even Samsara Daolords turn green-eyed with envy.
"I really have never seen so much of it before." Ning was located within a miniature estate-world which held a small pond within it. Ning stared at this elegant-looking small pond, which was merely thirty meters in size. It really was quite small… but Ning's eyes couldn't help but shine as he stared at it. This entire pool was formed from chaos nectar!
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 17 – The Trial of the Painting
After feeling stunned for a while, Ji Ning regained his normal composure. In the end, outside sources of power were extraneous. The path of cultivation was a path where one would have to rely on one's self.
"Time to go test out the Mirrorsnow Paintings," Ning murmured to himself.
The Mirrorsnow Paintings could only be entered once one reached the World level, and only World-level cultivators were granted entry; Samsara Daolords were unable to go inside.
"I wonder what sort of trials Emperor Mirrorsnow left behind? Time to take a look." More than two months had passed since he had returned from the Badlands Court. It had only taken him a single day to form the [Novessence Thunder] technique. The rest of his time had been spent ruminating over the Dao of the Sword. Ning had gained quite a few insights since his battle against Arroyo.
Ning had acquired the first Mirrorsnow Painting from the crocodilian bugbeast in the Grove of Monoliths within the Allgod Estate.
Ning was now seated by the sandy shores of that oceanic island, admiring the first painting. The painting was of a beautifully decorated palace, but the artistic quality of it really was rather low.
"In I go." Ning had bound the first Mirrorsnow Painting long ago. He now filled it with his Immortal energy, and his World-level energy instantly connected to the estate-world located within it.
Swoosh!
Ning entered the world of the painting.
"Eh?" Ning looked at his surroundings. Moments ago, he had been atop a sandy beach. Now, he was located within a towering palace that was carved out of jade. Its pillars glowed with golden light and were filled with carvings of strange beasts.
In front of Ning, far off into the distance up the stairs, there was a golden throne. A figure suddenly appeared before the golden throne. It was a tall, golden-robed man who sat down atop the throne, staring downwards towards Ning like an emperor staring at his subject.
"After so many years, a new World-level cultivator has finally entered." The golden-robed emperor said, "Junior, the Eternal Emperor ordered me to wait here for you. All you need to do is defeat me. If you can defeat me, you'll have passed the trial of this estate-world. The four Mirrorsnow Paintings hold a total of four estate-worlds within them. If you can pass all four trials, you shall become a true, personal disciple of the Eternal Emperor."
"Defeat you?" Ning looked at the golden-robed emperor. "Might I ask, what techniques am I permitted to use in this attempt?"
"You are not permitted to use Immortal energy or divine power. You must rely on nothing more than your own raw physical strength, and I'll use the same amount of strength as you. The two of us shall compete in swordplay and nothing but swordplay. Neither of us shall use divine abilities, secret arts, or anything else," the golden-robed emperor said. "If you can defeat me, you will have won."
Ning now understood. This was a test of his sword-arts. The four paintings represented four major challenges. Daolord Windsource's disciple had access to the third painting for an extremely long period of time, but he still remained unable to pass its trial. This was a testament to how difficult the trial would be.
"Come, then." A Frostice sword appeared within Ning's hands.
"Very well." The golden-robed emperor rose to his feet, a broad golden longsword appearing in his hands as well. He slowly walked down the stairs, his aura growing in power as he did so. It was as though he was the one and only sovereign of this world, as though everything had to prostrate before him.
Ning's face tightened slightly. What a terrifying sword-art! The man had yet to strike, but the sword-intent radiating from him had already caused Ning to feel a sense of danger.
"Great Firmament stance!"
Ning made his move. The Frostice sword in his hand struck out, causing the entire palace to become submerged within an endless mist of sword-light which blanketed everything. Although the Great Firmament stance was the third stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, it represented an entire Sword World. As Ning's sword-arts and cultivation continued to improve, his Sword World would naturally become increasingly powerful as well.
The seemingly endless Sword World was like a vast net that completely encompassed the golden-robed emperor.
HUAAAANG!
The sound of a sword 'roaring' suddenly filled the entire palace as a golden streak of sword-light tore apart that endless Sword World. It was like the rising of the dawn sun casting its first glow of light upon the world, and it completely shattered Ning's sword-arts apart.
Ji Ning was just barely able to use his own sword to block this attack, but he was knocked flying backwards by the force of the collision. Boom! He struck directly against the closed gate beneath him, causing a loud bang to be heard.
"What a dominating sword-art!" Ning was truly stunned.
This was a sword-art that was every bit as dominating as Arroyo's saber-arts had been! The reason why Ning had been able to so easily defeat Arroyo was primarily because he was being reinforced by the azureflower mist energy. If it hadn't been for his overwhelming advantage in speed and strength, and if he had to rely on just his sword-arts, there was no way he would've been able to defeat Arroyo's saber-arts in such a way.
"CHOP!" The golden-robed emperor took another step forward, once more striking out with that towering, majestic broadsword. His sword-light flashed brilliantly, and it seemed as though nothing could stop this strike.
Whoosh. The Frostice sword in Ning's hands suddenly transformed into a black hole, seeking to ablate the power of the enemy's strike and then defeat it. However, Ning could sense that his opponent's sword was so dominating and forceful that there was no way he could shake it at all. Instead, it was his own Soleheart stance which was broken. Once more, Ning was sent flying back by the force of the collision.
He was getting absolutely mauled in this fight.
The truth of the matter was, in terms of raw sword-arts Ning wasn't quite at the level of master-class World Gods. Even though he did have the [Nameless] sword-art and the [Quintessence Sword-Intent, he was just barely on the same level as the Starlord of Fogstone. He was far from being a match for this trial which Emperor Mirrorsnow had left behind.
Only a truly dazzlingly talented figure would be qualified to become the personal disciple of Emperor Mirrorsnow.
The golden-robed emperor within the first estate-world had incredibly profound sword-arts. Most likely, even Arroyo's saber-arts were slightly less mature in comparison. Arroyo had died shortly after making his breakthrough upon the Samsara Grinders, after all; he didn't really have enough time to stabilize and build upon his gains. This golden-robed emperor's sword-arts were finely perfected and absolutely flawless. They truly had reached a level of immaculate perfection.
"Wonderful, wonderful!" Ning emerged from the first estate-world, a look of delight on his face.
During this last battle, he had been sent flying into the walls, stone pillars, gates, and staircase more than sixty times. However, Ning felt nothing but pure joy. He had spent three thousand years meditating in the Hall of Sword, but he was in bad need of actual combat experience! No matter how much time you spent in meditation and training, if you didn't have any actual combat experience you would always have flaws in your technique.
In the world of the Mirrorsnow Painting, Ning was given an opponent who had essentially reached the apex of World-level sword-arts. This battle had given Ning a clear picture of the many flaws which existed in his sword-arts.
"Even if I'm unable to become Emperor Mirrorsnow's disciple, the mere fact that I now have an incredible expert in the Dao of the Sword who will spar against me whenever I wish is of incalculable value." Of course Ning was delighted!
"Let me take a look at the third estate-world." Ning pulled out the painting that he had acquired from the Windsource Ruins.
Ning entered the world of the painting. He found himself in a world with a beautiful mountain, a waterfall which seemed to descend from the heavens themselves, and beautiful creeks that swirled next to him.
Ning immediately saw the gray-robed fisherman located off in the distance. The fisherman simply sat there fishing.
"Finally, a new World-level cultivator." The fisherman rose to his feet in a leisurely way, then said calmly, "I have been waiting here on the orders of the Eternal Emperor. You are not permitted to use Immortal energy, divine power, divine abilities, or secret arts. I will use the same amount of strength as you possess in a swordplay competition."
"Understood." Ning nodded.
"Then come." The fisherman's fishing rod suddenly shrank to become merely three feet long, and he pointed it straight at Ning.
Ning was utterly trampled and demolished.
The fisherman within the third estate-world was incredible. His sword-arts were like the clouds in the sky, completely unpredictable in their movements and transformations. The power of his sword-arts seemed to be utterly inexhaustible as well as he sent out one strike after another. Ning was confident in his defensive abilities, but in the end he was simply unable to defend against the fisherman's attacks. He ended up getting whacked in the face quite a few times by that fishing rod, and was smashed into the ground each time.
Although the golden-robed emperor's sword had knocked Ning flying backwards, Ning was still able to use his sword to block against those attacks.
The fisherman's sword… Ning was actually unable to withstand it!
Ning knew that the fisherman and the golden-robed emperor each used different types of sword-arts, but were more or less on par with each other. The golden-robed emperor's sword-arts were more regal, upright, and just, and his attacks were filled with enormous power. The fisherman's sword-arts, by contrast, were more mysterious and unpredictable.
"Nice, nice, nice! Only by battling many experts who use the sword in different ways will I get a better picture of the flaws that exist in my own sword-arts." Ning was actually ecstatic at the beating he had just taken.
From this day forth, Ning became even more obsessed with meditating on his sword-arts. He battled against these two experts of the sword repeatedly, discovering many weaknesses in his own sword-arts and finding many areas for improvement.
The many insights into the Dao of the Sword which Ning had gained in the Hall of Swords were now finally transforming into true power. His sword-arts continuously improved with each sparring session, becoming more and more powerful.
Meditation and actual combat – the two went hand in hand. Both were necessary.
In the blink of an eye, more than ten years passed here in the Badlands Court. World God Dragonbinder had returned from the Allgod Estate as well, and the first thing he did upon returning was to go speak to Ji Ning.
"Brother Ji Ning, when I sensed the chaos energy fluctuating within the Allgod Estate I simply knew it had to be you making your breakthrough." When World God Dragonbinder saw Ning, he felt absolutely delighted.
The two spent some time dining and chatting together. Ning had gained many things from this trip to the Allgod Estate, but so too had World God Dragonbinder. In fact, he now had a vague idea as to what his path through Samsara would be. Alas, it was still nothing more than a vague idea. To actually tread that path and become a Samsara Daolord would be very, very difficult.
Still, it was definitely an improvement. If he couldn't even see or sense his path, how could he have any hope of walking it?
Six more years went back.
Sixteen years after Ning's return to the Badlands Court, a Samsara Daolord came to pay a visit to the Badlands Court.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 18 – Leaving the Badlands Territory
The Badlands Court. Flower petals could be seen everywhere, drifting to and fro.
Daolord Badlands and his wife were seated opposite a cyclopean man with a single horn on his head.
"I didn't expect that you would be assigned to personally escort this mission, big brother Fusu." Daolord Badlands smiled as he spoke.
"I was planning to visit the Triclopean Thundersea anyhow, which was why the Dao Alliance asked me to help escort these treasures." Daolord Fusu smiled. "The treasures you requested included the [Golden Idol] divine ability, a few Eternal weapons that are merely middle-grade, and the Mirrorsnow Painting. I imagine you must be purchasing them for one of your disciples, yes? You know, you really should make them go out and seek their fortunes. No matter how much you favor a disciple, you can't spoil him to this extent."
"Big brother Fusu, you think too highly of me. How could I possibly be willing to spend this much money just to help one disciple?" Daolord Badlands shook his head. "You'll have to forgive me for not being at liberty to disclose the reason why I have requested these items."
"Oh…" Daolord Fusu dropped this line of conversation. He let out a laugh. "Oh, right. I heard that old man Solesky of Vastheaven Palace has begun to furiously scour the realms for important treasures. He'll be planning to start his Daomerge soon. I heard that he's actually come to your Badlands Territory. He probably went to Waveshift world, right?"
"Yes." Daolord Badlands nodded. This was no secret. Many Samsara Daolords had already guessed at the truth, and a little bit of divination would be enough to show that this very likely the case.
"That old fellow is finally willing to start his Daomerge." Daolord Fusu let out a sigh. "Still, it makes sense. Their Vastheaven Palace has just given birth to a new Samsara Daolord, and Daolord Warlord has reached the fourth step as well. Even if old man Solesky fails his Daomerge, he'll still be able to protect Vastheaven Palace for a period of time before he perishes and his Dao vanishes. Vastheaven Palace will be able to grow considerably more powerful during this timeframe."
Daolord Badlands nodded slowly. When one failed in the Daomerge, one's truesoul would slowly begin to dissipate. However, given how formidable Daolords who were at the Verge of the Daomerge generally were, it would generally take an extremely long period of time for the truesoul to actually crumble away. It must be understood that even World God Northrest was able to endure for nearly a full chaos cycle before he truly died from the crumbling of his truesoul. Those ancient powers who were at the Verge would be able to last much longer.
But of course, if they went crazy and started attacking everyone around them, they would die much more quickly. Still… Daolords who had failed their Daomerge were destined to die, which make them incredibly fearsome foes to face. Some would engage in wild massacres and do things which they normally wouldn't have dared to do, for whatever reason. Who would dare to antagonize madmen like them?
"I envy him. I wonder how long it will be before I, too, can set my burdens aside and go to my Daomerge?" Daolord Fusu sighed. "My entire race's prosperity rests upon my shoulders. Although my race does have another Samsara Daolord, he's still at the first step despite an entire chaos cycle having gone by since his ascension. He still hasn't been able to reach the second step. I fear that his potential is limited and that he won't have the power to protect our race."
"Big brother Fusu, perhaps you will make a sudden breakthrough that will allow you to naturally and easily succeed in your Daomerge. When that happens, you will gain eternity," Daolord Badlands said.
"Gain eternity? The number of Eternal Emperors in the entire Dao Alliance can be counted on two hands." Daolord Fusu shook his head. "Enough of that. Let me give you the treasures which I escorted here. The price the Dao Alliance requested was a total of 1.81 million cubes of chaos nectar."
"1.81 million cubes?" Daolord Badlands nodded. Chaos nectar instantly began to flow out of his estate-world, automatically separating themselves into a total of 1.81 million cubes before flying towards Daolord Fusu.
Daolord Fusu left that very day as he headed off to the Triclopean Thundersea.
Late that night, Daolord Badlands paid a personal visit to the Water Curtain Home to visit Ji Ning.
"Daolord." Ning was shocked. "Daolord, if there's anything you need, all you had to do was have someone send word to me."
"I've pretty much finished the process of finding those treasures you sought," Daolord Badlands said. "I have the [Golden Idol, an Elementum Waterflame Gourd, and five Violetjewels. The Mirrorsnow Paintings were a bit harder to find, as very few are willing to sell them once acquired. I was only able to buy a copy of the second painting for you."
"That's more than enough!" Ning said hurriedly.
Ning had predicted early on that most Violetjewels had probably fallen into the hands of Samsara Daolords. To them, being able to sell a middle-grade Eternal weapon for nearly two hundred thousand cubes of chaos nectar was an absolutely wonderful bargain. They would easily be able to purchase another powerful sword as well as other treasures they needed. Ning wasn't surprised at all that they had been able to find the five copies that he needed.
Alas, the Mirrorsnow Painting was different. It was generally in the hands of World-level cultivators, and to those cultivators the paintings represented a priceless opportunity. Very few would be willing to sell off an opportunity to become a personal disciple of an Eternal Emperor. In fact, the Dao Alliance wasn't even sure as to who was in possession of most of the paintings, as most World-level cultivators would keep their ownership secret.
"If we just round it off, the total cost is roughly 1.8 million cubes," Daolord Badlands said. "I already gave you a million cubes previously. Let me give you another two hundred thousand cubes now, as well as these treasures."
As Daolord Badlands spoke, he handed Ning a smooth disc of jade that held an estate-world within it.
"Thank you, senior." Ning was very grateful.
The [Golden Idol] had cost two hundred thousand cubes while the Elementum Waterflame Gourd had cost five hundred thousand cubes. Daolord Badlands had been very clear about the price of these items, and so the total cost was around seven hundred thousand cubes.
In other words, the Mirrorsnow Painting and the five Violetjewels cost a total of 1.1 million cubes. Ning was actually quite happy with this price. Honestly, even if Daolord Badlands upped the cost a little bit, Ning wouldn't have been able to find out.
Within a private study. The six Violetjewels were all placed atop a desk, and they each emanated absolutely identical auras of sharpness and bloodlust.
"Six Violetjewels." Ning nodded slightly. They would be of enormous use to him and make him stronger. "With these six swords, I'll be several times more powerful than I currently am. I should be able to give a decent fight to a Samsara Daolord of the First Step. Even if I can't beat them, I should still be strong enough to escape."
When Ning had battled against the fisherman in the third estate-world of the Mirrorsnow Painting, he had eventually been unable to defend against the fisherman's rod.
However, Ning knew that one of the main reasons for this was that he had only been using a single sword. If he had six swords… it could be said that he could defend against even sixteen swords, preventing them from landing attacks upon him.
With just a single sword, Ning had been able to create an almost airtight defense. With six swords working in unison, it would be as though he was surrounded and protected by enormous bucklers. Given Ning's absolute control over the Soleheart stance, he would have no flaws in his defenses at all.
"The Elementum Waterflame Gourd." A gourd suddenly appeared out of nowhere in front of Ning. This was a red-black gourd which saw black lines intertwining and mixing together with red lines on the surface of the gourd, making it look mysterious and beautiful.
After Ning bound the treasure, he was immediately able to sense the explosive, terrifying power of the Dao lightning within it. The two types of Dao lightning within the gourd were the Watersmoke Lightning and the Firecloud Lightning. Both were filled with absolute savagery, and it made sense. All lightning was explosive and aggressive by nature, making them incredibly difficult to control."
"It really will be thousands of times more difficult to refine them than the chaos lightning." Ning couldn't help but sigh to himself.
"Let me take a look at the lower portion of the [Golden Idol]." Ning picked up a jade slip then sent his divine power into it. He could immediately sense the lifeblood oath covering the technique, as well as the various rules and regulations which the Dao Alliance had set down. Ning carefully read through everything. Once he decided there were no problems, he immediately swore the oath.
Instantly, the information regarding the lower portion of the [Golden Idol] began to fill Ning's mind…
Three days later.
"You are going to leave?" Daolord Badlands looked at Ning, who had come to pay respects to him.
"This junior needs to return to Vastheaven Palace," Ning said. "I regret having disturbed you so often in recent days, Daolord. This junior will definitely remember all the assistance you provided."
"Mm. Sooner or later, you do indeed have to return to Vastheaven Palace. However, to go from my Badlands Territory to the Vastheaven Territory is an extremely long journey, and you will encounter quite a few dangers and ancient powers on the way. It is difficult for me to divine exactly what you shall encounter on this journey." Daolord Badlands shook his head. "Just remember one thing: caution above all else."
"This junior understands." Ning nodded.
Vastheaven Palace was very, very far away from the Badlands Territory, and the journey was quite a perilous one. Even World-level cultivators would find such a sojourn to be filled with dangers. Still, Ning felt confident that he wasn't too much weaker than most Samsara Daolords of the First Step, which meant that he should at least be strong enough to keep himself safe and survive the trip.
"Go, then." Daolord Badlands nodded.
Ning departed.
A reflective look was in Daolord Badlands eyes as he stared at Ning's back as Ning left. "According to what Dragonbinder said, when Ji Ning was an Elder God he was capable of matching master-class World Gods in power. He can be considered a freakishly talented figure. Still… the path of cultivation is a path filled with countless dangers. I wonder how far he will make it on his path."
Freakishly talented? That didn't count for much. Daolord Badlands himself was a freakishly talented figure, and over the course of many chaos cycles he had seen quite a few other freakishly talented figures as well. However, the vast majority of them ended up dying on their path.
If Ji Ning was his own disciple he probably would've been willing to pay almost any price, up to and including suffering severe injuries, in order to carefully divine what would happen to Ning on this journey. However, Ji Ning was just a disciple of Vastheaven Palace. There was naturally no reason for Daolord Badlands to act in such a selfless manner.
The spacetime transfer array of the Badlands Everworld.
"First, we'll go to the Azuresky Territory." Ning led Su Youji into the transfer array.
"These two are requesting for the array to be activated just for them?" The Elder Gods and Ancestral Immortals responsible for protecting the array were all secretly speechless. The distance from here to the Azuresky Territory was incredibly vast. The cost of activating the array just for the two of them wouldn't' be a mere hundred bottles; it would be a full cube of chaos nectar!
Still, Ning truly didn't care about the cost. Going from the Badlands Territory to the Vastheaven Territory would at most cost him roughly a thousand cubes of chaos nectar! There were also many places where there were no connecting spacetime transfer arrays. He would have to personally fly to the closest array, often through many dangerous regions.
"The Badlands Territory…" Su Youji stared towards the outside of the array. "So I, Su Youji, am actually going to have a chance to see and explore other territories." Being powerful enough to voyage through other territories was a testament to her strength.
"The Badlands Territory!" Ning stared at the skies far above them. This was the place where he had gotten his first start after departing from the Three Realms.
Rumble…
Spacetime began to twist and distort.
The entire array began to shine with blinding light as it tore through the fabric of space and time, teleporting the two of them to a distant place in the spacetime continuum. When the light faded away, the two figures had vanished from within the array.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 19 – Trifount Planet
More than ninety-two years went by in the blink of an eye.
The Qianyun Territory was a place that was incredibly far away from the Badlands Territory. Trifount was one of the planets located within this territory, and it was one of the core planets that were part of a local spacetime transfer array. The spacetime transfer array was gleaming with light as it twisted and distorted spacetime. Moments later, two figures suddenly appeared within it.
The first figure was a white-robed youth who was carrying a sword on his back. The second was a fiery-robed woman. The two were Ji Ning and Su Youji, who had travelled here all the way from the Badlands Territory.
"Trifount." Ning and Su Youji both emerged from the formation and stared off into the distance.
Rumble…
A massive geyser of water could be seen off in the distance, blasting a fountain of water thirty thousand meters into the air. The stars glittered in the skies above them, causing the water to sparkle with rainbow light. This planet was constructed in a strange way, resulting in three enormous geysers that blasted mountain-sized fountains of water high up into the air. This was the reason why the planet was known as Trifount.
"We finally reached Trifount." Su Youji had a rather solemn look on her face. "Master, our next destination will be the most dangerous place in our journey; the Sea of Darkness."
"Yes. Once we pass the Sea of Darkness, we won't be too far away from Vastheaven Palace." Ning nodded as well.
Ninety-two years…
Ning and Su Youji had travelled through many different territories, some of which they had to fly through or teleport their way through! This was why it had taken them so long. They had encountered a number of dangerous situations along the way, including some deadly environments as well as cultivators who had sought to waylay and kill them. However, none of these situations had truly been troublesome for the two of them.
They dared to ambush Ji Ning? They truly had been courting death.
"The most dangerous part of the journey from the Badlands Territory to the Vastheaven Territory is the passage through the Sea of Darkness." Ning and Su Youji were standing alongside each other atop a tall mountain, staring off towards the distant void of space. Ning said, "Given how fast we travel… I expect it will take us eight centuries to go through the entire Sea of Darkness!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Suddenly, three streaks of light flew towards them from afar. They soon arrived before Ning and Su Youji, the streaks of light transforming into three cultivators who emanated auras of tremendous power. There were two men and one woman, but all three had World-level auras.
"Fellow Daoists." The leader of the three, a fairly muscular man, walked over with a smile on his face. "Have you come to Trifount for the sake of passing through the Sea of Darkness?"
"Yes." Ning nodded, not denying it.
The muscular man smiled. "My name is Xiang Lu. He is World God Windgrace while she is Chaos Immortal Waterswell." The handsome, violet-robed man next to him nodded towards Ning and Su Youji. "Windgrace greets you, fellow Daoists."
"Waterswell greets you, fellow Daoists." The female Chaos Immortal was just as attractive as Windgrace, and her aura was even more charming than Su Youji's.
Su Youji could be described as flickering flame, filled with alluring magnetism. This Chaos Immortal named Waterswell, however, was like a pool of gentle, soft water.
"I am Darknorth. She is the Flamefairy." Ning introduced their side as well.
"Fellow Daoist Darknorth. Fellow Daoist Flamefairy." The muscular man said, "We saw you two appear within the spacetime transfer array from afar. When we noticed how you two decided to stay here, we had a suspicion that you might be planning to travel through the Sea of Darkness. I imagine both of you know exactly how dangerous the Sea of Darkness is, and the journey is an extremely long one as well. Given how long and how dangerous the journey is, for a small group of just four or five World-level cultivators to try to pass through it by themselves is an extremely risky and difficult endeavor."
Ning and Su Youji both nodded. It was true. It would indeed be very dangerous! There were many dangers on the path from the Badlands Territory to the Vastheaven Territory, but the Sea of Darkness was the most dangerous place of them all! Even someone as powerful as Ji Ning wouldn't dare to claim 100% confidence in navigating the place successfully."
"That is why those of us who wish to traverse the Sea of Darkness will generally join together into a group before venturing forth." The muscular man laughed. "Our current plan is to wait until we have a total of ninety-nine World-level fellow Daoists, so that we can join together into a formation if necessary. Once we have enough people, we will head into the Sea of Darkness. We already have more than eighty fellow Daoists, and the three of us have come to ask the two of you to join us."
"Ninety-nine?" Ning and Su Youji exchanged glances.
"Don't worry. When we have enough people, all of us will swear a simple lifeblood oath that we are absolutely not permitted to attack any of our fellow travelers," the muscular man said. "With ninety-nine of us working together, we will have a better than 90% chance of traversing the Sea of Darkness."
Ning agreed with this assessment. Ninety-nine! Given how many World-level cultivators would be gathered here, some would most likely be supreme World Gods.
Once they all joined together into a formation and were able to support each other, those supreme World Gods would be comparable to Arroyo in strength! The others wouldn't be too weak either. Once they all fought together, it was likely that even Samsara Daolords of the First Step would have to stay away from them.
"Fine." Ning nodded and smiled. "Just now, the two of us were worrying about how we were going to safely traverse the Sea of Darkness. It would indeed be much safer for us if we can work together alongside so many fellow Daoists."
"Immortal Waterswell, please lead these two fellow Daoists to the others," the muscular man instructed. He then looked at Ning. "Brother Windgrace and I will have to stay here and keep an eye out for any other World-level cultivators who we can invite to join us. Sorry for being unable to send you off personally."
"No need." Ning and Su Youji followed Chaos Immortal Waterswell and flew off into the distance.
"Our many fellow Daoists are all located close to this place." After flying for just a short period of time, they reached a flat grassland. There were quite a few World-level cultivators here clustered into small groups of two or three people. A total of eighty-three cultivators were located on this plains.
"The two of you can rest here for now. We'll head out once we reach a total of ninety-nine cultivators. I'm going to go back now and wait alongside big brother Xiang Lu."
Although quite a few World-level cultivators had been gathered here, only twenty or thirty percent of them belonged to the Qianyun Territory. The others were all from nearby territories, with very few being from places as far away as the Badlands Territory.
Most of the people here didn't know each other, nor did they need to know each other. After passing through the Sea of Darkness, they would all go their separate ways. Thus, they all stayed clustered in small groups of two or three, not really fraternizing with the others.
"Let's just wait, then." Ning and Su Youji sat down in the lotus position, waiting silently while drinking some Immortal nectar.
While waiting, Ning continuously sent out a small amount of his divine power to create incarnations which he sent into the Mirrorsnow Painting. He repeatedly challenged the expert swordsman within the third estate-world using his incarnation.
The golden-robed emperor. The fisherman. The assassin.
When dueling, these three would use the exact same amount of power as Ning. It was merely a contest of swordplay, and so Ning could simply use incarnations of divine power to carry out the sparring.
As for Ning's true body? Ning spent his attention on training in the [Golden Idol]. Initially, Ning immediately used three hundred cubes worth of chaos jewels to upgrade his body to the Dao weapon level. After that, he began to simply train slowly in the technique, using just a small amount of chaos jewels as he did so.
To upgrade his body and make it comparable to top-grade Dao weapons would require an extremely long period of time. Ning was in no rush. It was fine to take it slow.
Fortunately, they only had to wait eleven years at Trifount before the total number of World-level cultivators reached ninety-nine.
"My fellow Daoists." World God Xiang Lu smiled as he looked at the ninety-plus cultivators on the plains. "We've already gathered a total of ninety-nine World-level cultivators. It is time for us to head off into the Sea of the Darkness. Here are the formation-discs. Each cultivator can simply bind a single formation-disc."
A total of ninety-eight discs of light appeared before him, then flew towards the other World-level cultivators.
"This is an extremely simple formation. You'll know once you take a look at it." World God Xiang Lu smiled.
Ning accepted a formation disc. After sending his power into it, he quickly understood that this was indeed a very simple formation. It merged all the energy of the cultivators into one mass, making it so that all the cultivators were reinforcing and supporting each other. They would all be much more powerful as a result.
There were actually many formations that were more powerful than this one, but none of the World-level cultivators here really knew each other or trusted each other. It was precisely because this formation was so simple that everyone had no suspicions regarding it and were willing to use it.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
As the cultivators bound the formation-discs, streams of light began to surge into the skies. The ninety-nine streams of light connected with each other, and all of the cultivators were blessed with the strength and power of the formation.
"I swear on my very life itself…"
"I swear on my very life itself…"
"I swear on my very life itself…"
The ninety-nine World-level cultivators simultaneously sent their Immortal energies into the oathstone they were surrounding. As they all swore the lifeblood oaths, they could sense the oaths of the others taking effect as well.
All of the oaths were identical. So long as they were in the Sea of Darkness, they were absolutely not permitted to launch attacks against their comrades. If the oath was violated, the assaulted party wouldn't even need to fight back; the lifeblood oath itself would ensure that the violator's truesoul was destroyed.
Once the oaths were sworn, the cultivators all grew noticeably friendlier towards each other. There was now at least an element of trust amongst them.
"My name is Poisonfeather. This flying vessel of mine is a top-grade Dao treasure that is specialized for long-distance flying. It should be quite suitable for traversing through the Sea of Darkness." A bald, silver-eyed man suddenly spoke out. "We can ride it together! If anyone has any better flying treasures, we can use that instead." 1
Soon, the cultivators all decided to use Daoist Poisonfeather's ship for their journey through the Sea of Darkness.
"Let's head out!"
The ninety-nine cultivators all boarded the ship, keeping the formation active as they departed from Trifount and headed off towards the Sea of Darkness.
1. Poisonfeather's name is actually 'Flying Zhen', with 'Zhen' being a Chinese mythological beast that is often called the 'Poisonfeather Bird', for self-explanatory reasons.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 20 – The Sea of Darkness
The flying vessel was three thousand meters long, completely black, and was shaped like a weaver's shuttle. It continuously advanced through the dark void of space towards the vast sea before them.
If Ji Ning wished to reach Vastheaven Palace, he absolutely had to pass through the Sea of Darkness! If he went around it, it would result in an incredibly long detour. What's more, the map which Daolord Solesky had given Ning didn't even specify the details to any such detour, instead simply telling him to go straight through the sea. This was because this was actually the safest option; the other options were even more dangerous!
Although this was safer by comparison, it was still a rather dangerous trip for World-level cultivators. If they weren't careful, they would easily die in this place.
This was one of the reasons why very few World-level cultivators would embark on such long journeys! When Ning had been in the Badlands Territory, he had queried the Starlord of Fogstone regarding the location of Vastheaven Palace, but neither the Starlord nor his subordinates had even heard of it. This was because the distance between the two territories was utterly enormous. Even the Badlands Court, the most powerful organization within the Badlands Territory, only held a few cultivators who were aware of Vastheaven Palace.
"We'll reach the Sea of Darkness soon," Ning sent mentally. "I recommend you go into the golem now. Don't stray too far from my side."
"I know my own limits, Master." Su Youji was quite excited. "The legendary Sea of Darkness. Actually, I've never even heard of it before this! To think that I'm going to be going into it just a short while from now. Wow. This trip from the Badlands Territory to the Vastheaven Territory will give me something to brag about for many, many years to come."
Ning chuckled, then closed his eyes and focused on attuning to the sword-intent of his Violetjewels.
He was attuned to its sword-intent at all times as he continuously meditated on the Dao of the Sword.
Whoosh.
The flying vessel continuously teleported through the emptiness of space. Roughly a day later, they finally arrived at the borders of the Sea of Darkness.
The entire vessel was completely silent as all ninety-nine cultivators stared at the distant sea of spatial chaos. Even here, at the mere borders of the sea, they could sense the spatial waves crashing against their flying vessel.
"Everyone." World God Xiang Lu spoke out. The other cultivators turned their gazes from the Sea to him.
"According to what fellow Daoist Poisonfeather said, although this vessel is fast, it'll still take over six hundred years to go through the Sea of Darkness. During these six hundred years, we'll be in a state of constant danger. Thus, if anything happens I would like to ask that the more powerful experts among us to hold back. Please help out our weaker fellow Daoists. Once one of us dies, the formation will be dramatically weakened as well. The more of us die, the weaker the formation will be, making it even more difficult for us to safely traverse the Sea of Darkness," World God Xiang Lu said.
"Naturally."
"Since we are all on the same ship, we should all support and help each other."
"Fellow Daoists, I hope all of us will be able to make it safely through this Sea of Darkness."
The cultivators aboard the vessel were all quite nervous. This was the Sea of Darkness, after all. Most likely, few to none of them would dare to traverse this place all by themselves.
As for Ning, he watched quite calmly from his little corner. His original plan had been to venture into the Sea of Darkness alongside Su Youji, but that would have indeed been rather dangerous. Now that ninety-nine World-level cultivators had joined forces, if nothing went awry they would stand at least a ninety-plus percent chance of successfully traversing the Sea. If you factored in Ning's true level of power, it could be said that they were virtually guaranteed to succeed.
Boom!
The pitch-black vessel flew forward at high speed, smashing straight into the Sea of Darkness. It continuously sped up as it flew forward, quickly breaking past the limits of the Heavenly Daos and continuing to skyrocket in speed. Soon, it reached a level of speed that was roughly double the speed of light. This was the vessel's limit, and it began to cruise forward at this speed.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Dark, turbulent waves of distorted chaos and space repeatedly crashed the sides of the vessel.
As for the ninety-nine cultivators, they all stared intently at their surroundings. Even Ning elected to draw Violetjewel from its sheath on his back.
"What a nervous feeling." Su Youji stared at her surroundings as well.
The World Gods and Chaos Immortals present were all extraordinary figures with extraordinary vision. Take Ji Ning, for instance. Even when he merely relied on his eyes, his current visual acuity far surpassed the level he was at back when he was an Empyrean God who used the [Torch Dragon's Eye].
"No need to be so worried, everyone. I've been through the Sea of Darkness before." A pudgy, fat-faced, chubby-eared youth next to Ning let out a merry chuckle. "The most dangerous race of creatures here in the Sea of Darkness is the race of 'Oddbats', but they live in groups deep within the Sea of Darkness. Based on my previous experience, we'll generally suffer just one attack every four or five days."
"YIIIIII!" An ear-piercing screech suddenly rang out.
A strange beast that was pitch-black in color and had a pair of bat-like wings suddenly emerged out of nowhere from the spatial waves. It brandished its fierce claws as it charged straight towards one of the cultivators atop the vessel. Fortunately, that cultivator had been keeping a vigilant watch and immediately struck out with his enormous greataxe, the power of his blow causing space around him to congeal and turn almost solid.
"Kill."
"Kill!"
One strange creature after began to emerge from the spatial waves, all having bat-like wings, incredibly sharp spear-like tails, and fierce claws.
"Oddbats!" Ning was wielding Violetjewel, while Su Youji had already entered her golem. She was able to control it at the same time as she controlled the many blade-like magic treasures around her.
"Kill! Kill!" One of the Oddbats flew onto the vessel and pounced straight towards Ning. Ning struck out with Violetjewel, transforming it into a streak of graceful sword-light that chopped straight towards the Oddbat's neck. However, the Oddbat used its left claw to gracefully deflect the blow.
Clank!
When the sword clashed against the claw, a clanking sound was heard.
"According to the star map records I read pertaining to the Sea of Darkness, these Oddbat creatures have incredibly tough tails and claws, which are the hardest parts on their bodies and equivalent to Dao weapons. It seems this really is the case." Still, Ning simply spun his sword-light in a relaxed, graceful manner.
Slash! How could a dumb creature such as an Oddbat possibly be able to defend against Ning's marvelous sword-arts? The sword chopped straight through the Oddbat's neck, severing its head from the rest of its body. Moments later, the Oddbat's body began to completely break apart, leaving nothing behind.
Oddbats…
They were unique creatures that were formed from the unique environs of the Sea of Darkness. They possessed extremely low levels of intelligence, and they usually lived for only shockingly brief periods of time. Although they had World-level power, they lived for less than three centuries. Once three centuries passed, their bodies would naturally disintegrate and leave nothing behind. The only way for them to live longer was for them to undergo a fundamental evolution.
It could be said that there were three tiers of Oddbats. There were the black Oddbats, the silver Oddbats, and the golden Oddbats. The black Oddbats only lived for less than three centuries, the silver Oddbats lived for less than a chaos cycle, but the golden Oddbats could live forever.
However, every part of a golden Oddbat's body was a precisely treasure. Generally speaking, when Samsara Daolords encountered them, they would immediately kill them and collect the corpse! Thus, there were very few golden Oddbats in the Sea of Darkness.
"Kill!"
Slash!
Bang!
Magic treasures flew everywhere, as did sword-light, saber-light, and divine abilities.
The cultivators aboard the flying vessel all used the various techniques they had available to quickly massacre any of the Oddbats who dared to invade their vessel. After battling for a short period of time, the remaining Oddbats all retreated.
Hundreds of Oddbats had taken part in this battle, all of black-colored ones who were fairly weak.
"That was certainly easy."
"We beat them pretty easily."
"I barely had a chance to even fight."
The previously nervous cultivators all glanced at each other. Many were now much more relaxed than before.
"We were lucky this time. We only encountered black Oddbats. If a silver Oddbat had come, things would've been much more troublesome. I've heard that silver Oddbats are very nearly comparable to transcendent World Gods in power," the chubby-faced youth chortled.
"Ol' brother Ninehearts, can you please shut your yap? I don't want to run into one of those silver Oddbats." An old man next to him who had a face that looked like the withered bark of a dried tree shook his head helplessly.
"Silver Oddbats are nothing. According to the legends I heard, there are golden Oddbats as well," the chubby-faced youth said.
Time slowly flowed on.
It was just as World God Ninehearts said. Every four or five days, they would suffer an attack. Every so often, a silver Oddbat would appear amongst the ranks of the black Oddbats!
None of the ninety-nine cultivators aboard the flying vessel were weak. Most were master-class World-level cultivators, and there were at least three supreme World-level cultivators! This was based on the amount of power they had displayed thus far.
A single supreme World-level cultivator, supported by the power of the formation, was enough to contend against one of the silver Oddbats.
"There really is strength in numbers." Ning continued to relax in his corner of the flying vessel. Thus far, he hadn't even used any divine abilities, much less the azureflower mist energy.
Ninety-nine World-level cultivators fighting in unison truly made for a powerful force. There was no need for Ning to fight too hard; they were able to easily defeat the repeated attacks by the Oddbats.
Three hundred and eleven years passed after their entry into the Sea of Darkness. The flying vessel continued to advance through the chaotic waves.
"Come, brother Darknorth. Drink with us!"
"Brother Poisonfeather."
"Fairy Yun."
The vessel was filled with the sound of laughter. Everyone was drinking and chatting, but they were also ready to engage in battle at a moment's notice. They had gotten accustomed to fighting every few days during the past three centuries.
The battles had all been quite easy. Most of the World-level cultivators on the ship, Ning included, had yet to be forced to show their true power.
Roughly ten trillion kilometers away from them, in a region of chaotic space, an incredibly dense cluster of black Oddbats and a few silver Oddbats were 'escorting' a completely golden Oddbat. The golden Oddbat spread out its golden wings just a bit, its intelligent eyes staring at the distant flying vessel.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 21 – Ambushed
"Everything has been verified?" The golden Oddbat spoke verbally, its shrill voice reverberating in a strange manner that caused ripples to appear in the already-chaotic space around it.
"Everything has been verified, your Highness. That flying vessel is indeed crewed by World-level cultivators, and there are ninety-nine of them in total." A silver Oddbat responded respectfully to the query.
Oddbats were extremely dumb creatures, with the black ones only capable of calling out for blood and mayhem. It was difficult for them to even form complete sentences. However, once they evolved to become silver Oddbats they would gain a much longer lifespan and a dramatically increased level of intelligence. Silver Oddbats were at least comparable to ordinary mortals in intelligence.
"Ninety-nine World-level cultivators?" The golden Oddbat stared coldly towards the distant vessel. "They actually managed to mass such a large number of cultivators? That probably means they don't have any Samsara Daolords amongst their ranks. Samsara Daolords wouldn't bother with waiting so long, they'd just go through by themselves. Mm… since that's the case, ehehe…"
Oddbats had a strange fetish; they delighted in eating the flesh of cultivators. They could even devour the incredibly tough bodies of most World Gods! So long as those divine bodies had not reached the Dao weapon level, the golden Oddbats would be able to crunch through them like candy. To the golden Oddbats, cultivators were the finest delicacies in existence.
This was exacerbated by the fact that Oddbats generally tended to be massacred in vast numbers by travelers. Even their kings, the golden Oddbats, would often find themselves killed by Samsara Daolords if they were careless. Thus, the race of Oddbats harbored tremendous hatred for cultivators in general.
"What luck. The Sea of Darkness is such a vast place, but I actually managed to run into a vessel of cultivators. Kill them, my children!" The golden Oddbat let out a shrill shriek as it ordered, "Wipe out all the cultivators on that vessel! Kill them all!"
"Yes." The nine silver Oddbats assented respectfully in unison.
"Yes!" "Yes!" "Yes!" The many black Oddbats all cried out in a raucous chorus.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
The dense cluster of Oddbats all quickly passed through the spatial waves and flew towards the distant flying vessel. The Oddbats were born from within the Sea of Darkness and thus were born with the innate ability to conceal themselves within the violent spatial tempests within the Sea. This was the reason why they were able to fly close to the vessel without being detected.
The Sea of Darkness was incredibly vast, but it had very few golden Oddbats within it. Even though the vessel Ning's group was in was incredibly fast, it would still need more than six centuries to pass through the Sea. One could imagine how utterly vast it was! This was why it was extremely rare for a group to be unlucky enough to encounter a golden Oddbat. In fact, dozens of squads would often pass through the Sea without a single squad encountering one.
"Master, before we entered the Sea of Darkness you frightened me half to death with the stories about how dangerous this place is. Well? Look at how relaxed we all are!" Su Youji was seated next to Ji Ning in a corner of the vessel. The two were engaged in conversation.
"That's because you have more than ninety other cultivators fighting alongside you, helping you deal with those Oddbats. If the two us had to deal with them all by ourselves, what do you think would happen?" Ning gave her a sideways glance.
Su Youji blinked.
What would happen?
Although Ji Ning was strong, he was still just one person. He'd only be able to deal with a portion of the Oddbats at any given point in time. Su Youji would have to rely on her golem and the bugbeasts to fight against them, but she'd still be in grave danger.
But of course, now that they had ninety-nine cultivators and a supportive formation, things were completely different.
"If I have to blame someone, I'm going to blame you for not having sufficiently detailed information," Su Youji mumbled. "The awe-inspiringly, inconceivably famous Daolord Nihilate failed in his Daomerge and is now searching for a disciple. How is it that your intelligence reports made no mention of such earth-shaking news?"
Ning couldn't help but let out an involuntarily snort.
The Sea of Darkness was an incredibly dangerous place. Although it was located next to the Qianyun Territory, in normal times it was extremely rare for cultivators to pass through the Sea, and they would only do so if they had an extremely special reason for it. It would take a very long period of time for ninety-nine World-level cultivators to be gathered. In contrast, this time they had managed to reach this figure in a very short period of time.
This was because of something which had happened on the other end of the Sea of Darkness, within the Jadesea Territory. A Samsara Daolord known as Daolord Nihilate had failed in his Daomerge, then had publicly proclaimed that he wished to take on a disciple!
Daolord Nihilate was an incredibly famous figure, especially in the surrounding territories. However, he was a solitary figure with no sect and no disciples to his name.
Now that he had failed in his Daomerge, he had suddenly realized that he didn't have any heirs at all. This was why he had chosen to accept a disciple. Daolords who had failed in the Daomerge were all at least Verge-class Daolords who were just as powerful as Daolord Solesky! If such a powerful Daolord wished to take on a disciple, almost every World-level cultivator would be willing to sacrifice almost anything in order to become that disciple!
Although this master would undoubtedly die in the future, it was a fact that even a World God like Northrest was able to survive for a full chaos cycle before his truesoul faded away. So long as Daolord Nihilate didn't go crazy and engaged in repeated, frenzied battles, he would be able to stay alive for an extremely long period of time. By the time he passed away, his guidance probably would've resulted in his student becoming a Samsara Daolord as well.
More importantly… who would dare to antagonize you if you had a master who had just failed his Daomerge? It could be said that prior to your master dying, you could do whatever you wished and be completely unchallenged. More than 80% of the people on Ning's vessel were heading to the Jadesea Territory to try and take on Daolord Nihilate as their master.
"While travelling to this place from the Badlands Territory, I heard quite a few legends and stories about things that had happened in the ancient past. I heard many stories about truly powerful Daolords who failed their Daomerge, their Daos vanishing and their lives ending…" Ning shook his head and sighed. "I really have heard of very few Daolords who succeeded in their Daomerge."
Ning was worried about Daolord Solesky. Although they hadn't had many interactions with each other, Daolord Solesky truly had treated Ning as he would a brother. In the Windsource Ruins, Daolord Solesky had suffered severe injuries but elected to go all-out in attempting to locate Ning before even treating his own wounds. Only after he had located Ning had he calmed down and started to heal himself. Ning had felt tremendously moved by him when NIng saw this.
"Watch out!"
"YIIIIIII!"
A sudden, shocking, high-pitched Oddbat shriek suddenly rang out. The cultivators who had been chatting calmly amongst each other instantly took control of their respective treasures and weapons, then started to attack.
Slash! Sword-light flashed in Ning's hands as he slew a black Oddbat. The creature's head went flying off, then the rest of its body dissipated into nothingness.
"What?!" Ning's face suddenly fell dramatically.
A tight, dense cluster of black Oddbats had appeared in the area around the vessel. There were far more Oddbats this time than there had ever been in the past, at least ten times more than the previous record! There had to be thousands of the things. They all circled around the vessel, causing it to slow down and eventually come to a full stop, unable to move any further.
"Transform.' Ning's body blurred as he manifested three heads and six arms. He now wielded six Violetjewels in his arms.
"Careful, everyone."
"There are nine of those silver Oddbats."
The situation instantly turned extremely grim as all the cultivators began to grow nervous. It must be understood that every single silver Oddbat was comparable to a transcendent World God in power. Even though the cultivators were all supported by the power of their formation, they had to have originally possessed the power of a supreme World God if they wished to be able to give the silver Oddbats a good fight.
Whoosh. Ning's sword-light spun out in a beautiful arc, causing eight of the black Oddbats around him to be annihilated.
"Youji, bind this bugnest." Ning immediately tossed a jade green globe to Su Youji. As soon as she bound it, she would be in control of the fifty-one bugbeasts stored within it. Given how ugly the situation was looking and how many Oddbats were attacking, Ning was worried that he wouldn't be able to protect her.
"Alright." Su Youji nodded. She wouldn't decline or be polite at a time like this, and she immediately bound the treasure.
"Kill."
"Kill."
"There's too many of these Oddbats!"
"Why are there so many?"
"Block that silver Oddbat!"
A wild battle was occurring atop the flying vessel. Magic treasures flew everywhere while World Gods charged to and fro.
"Let me deal with this silver Oddbat."
"I'll handle that one!"
The cultivators on the vessel had never experienced a truly dangerous situation during this trip. Quite a few of them had therefore been hiding their true power. Now, however, they had to reveal everything. There were actually more than ten cultivators who had the power of supreme World Gods! It made sense. If you wanted to become a disciple of Daolord Nihilate, you had to have enough power to back up that goal.
"Kill!"
Ning had transformed into a ghostly blur, his swords becoming even more ephemeral and unpredictable than before. They struck out lightning fast, causing Oddbats to perish wherever they went. The Oddbats were completely unable to defend against Ning's terrifying sword-art.
During the past three hundred-plus years, Ning had often sent incarnations of divine power into the estate-worlds of the Mirrorsnow Paintings to challenge the guardians. His sword-arts were now much more powerful than they had been back in the Badlands Territory.
"Wipe out any Oddbats that get near me." Su Youji summoned her bugbeasts, calling out a total of thirty of them to surround her and slay any Oddbats that dared to draw near her.
The black Oddbats were all quite weak, after all. These bugbeasts all had the power of master-class World Gods; plenty strong enough to deal with Oddbats.
Cultivators were engaged in fierce battles throughout the entire vessel. As a result, they were able to just barely hold their own against this assault by the nine silver Oddbats and thousands of black Oddbats.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 22 – Golden Oddbat
More and more black Oddbats died as the battle progressed, resulting in the cultivators relaxing slightly. Although the situation was still quite grim, they were no longer under as much pressure as they were before.
The chubby, fat-faced youth named World God Ninehearts suddenly turned his head to stare off into the distance, his face turning pale. He immediately shouted mentally to everyone, "Watch out!"
Whoosh!
A blurry figure suddenly appeared out of nowhere next to a tall, skinny World God who was dressed in black armor. The World God was already engaged in battle, but he hurriedly chopped out with the waraxe in his hands.
Clank!
Crunch!
The illusory figure suddenly seemed to wrap itself around the World God's head. Crunch! The head was bitten clean off. Only now did the other cultivators on the vessel see that the creature which had bit off the head of the World God was a golden Oddbat. The golden Oddbat's wings were spread out and its terrifying aura had completely enveloped the entire vessel. It then swallowed down the rest of the World God's body into its tummy.
"A golden Oddbat." The faces of all the cultivators present turned ashen.
Golden Oddbats were unique, legendary creatures of the Sea of Darkness. They were the most terrifying creatures that could be found in the Sea! Silver Oddbats were comparable to transcendent World Gods, while golden Oddbats were comparable to Daolords of the First Step. Powerful Samsara Daolords were able to easily slaughter golden Oddbats, treating their body parts as valuable treasures, but World-level cultivators viewed the golden Oddbats as utter nightmares. How many World-level cultivators were able to battle against Daolords of the First Step?
Ninety-eight cultivators were still alive, but the death of that single cultivator resulted in the strength of the formation dropping by nearly 30%! If the ninety-eight cultivators worked together, they would be able to withstand that golden Oddbat. The problem was that there were nine silver Oddbats and thousands of black Oddbats attacking them as well. The cultivators present simply didn't have any excess capacity to spare right now.
"Careful, everyone! Hold on for as long as you can. Brother Ninehearts, brother Loopwise, join me in fighting against that golden Oddbat. If we let it slaughter the others, all of us are going to die." The master of the flying vessel, the bald silver-eyed World God Poisonfeather, sent a hurried mental message to the others.
World God Poisonfeather, World God Ninehearts, and World God Loopwise were the supreme World Gods on the vessel who were not tied down in combat against a silver Oddbat.
"Hurry up and go."
"Leave the other Oddbats to us."
"Be careful!"
The other cultivators all gritted their teeth as they fought, doing their best to hold on as long as they could.
The three supreme World Gods Poisonfeather, Ninehearts, and Loopwise all transformed into streaks of light as they flew strange towards that golden Oddbat.
The golden Oddbat watched coldly as those three powerful cultivators charged towards it. It was extremely confident in its own powers. It was capable of avoiding the three, but why would it even see the need to avoid the three?
They were merely World-level cultivators. In the golden Oddbat's eyes, these cultivators were nothing more than tasty snacks!
"Puny cultivators…" The golden Oddbat spread wide its golden, bat-like wings as the three cultivators reached its side. Supported and empowered by the group formation, they could be considered to have just barely reached the transcendent World God level of power.
"Light." World God Poisonfeather had a solemn look on his face. He stabbed forward with the pike in his hands, a spot of light appearing at its tip. The surrounding area was completely plunged into darkness, leaving behind only that single tip of light.
"Die." World God Loopwise complete transformed a savage, roaring wave of blood. Flickers of saber-light could be seen flashing within this wave of blood as it surged towards the golden Oddbat.
"If you don't die, who will?" The chubby, fat-faced youth World God Ninehearts struck out with his longspear, causing spacetime to distort and fold in on itself. It seemed as though there was no way for anyone to dodge this spear no matter what.
These three were amongst the most powerful cultivators on this vessel. Although the other cultivators were furiously defending against the onslaught of the other Oddbats, they were able to spare a little bit of attention to watch this battle. When they saw these three killer moves being unleashed, they couldn't help but feel a hint of eagerness.
Rumble…
The golden Oddbat suddenly flapped its giant golden bat wings. As soon as its wings moved, all of the chaotic spatial waves around it suddenly turned still… and then, the golden Oddbat itself became the source of all of the spatial waves in this area. Its flapping wings began to kick up an enormous spatial tempest as the wings began to rapidly increase in size, to the point where the wings seemed large enough to cover the entire vessel.
Poisonfeather's lance, Loopwise's saber-light, Ninehearts' longspear…
Boom! Boom! Boom! A series of explosions rang out.
All three World Gods were knocked flying backwards. They slammed hard into the deck of the ship, all three of them vomiting out blood.
"How can this be?"
"How can it be this powerful?"
"Three supreme World Gods, supported by our formation, aren't even able to withstand a single strike from it?"
"How can…"
The ninety-plus cultivators instantly felt their hearts freeze and their hopes vanish. Apparently, those three supreme World Gods weren't even close to being a match for the golden Oddbat. Most likely, all of the supreme World Gods on the vessel would have to join forces in order to have a chance! Alas, the vessel was being assaulted by nine silver Oddbats and the thousands of black Oddbats as well.
"We are finished." Some of the cultivators began to feel despair. They couldn't come up with any solutions for dealing with these foes.
"In terms of technique or their mastery of the Dao, those three are my equals." Ning had watched carefully as those three had charged forward. He had actually followed right behind them, watching them test out the golden Oddbat in the hopes that he could get a sense of how powerful it truly was.
As soon as those enormous bat-wings had flapped, the three World Gods had been knocked flying backwards.
Ning frowned slightly upon seeing this. He was quickly able to come to a series of judgments. "So it really is true! Oddbats are all incredibly dumb creatures. Even golden Oddbats are only talented in the Dao of Space because of their incredible innate gifts in this Dao. Despite that, their insights are only comparable to the insights of ordinary World-level cultivators."
Oddbats. The black Oddbats had the intelligence level of ordinary human infants, and they knew almost no combat techniques at all. They relied entirely on their innate gifts to battle.
Golden Oddbats were far more powerful, but their insights into the Dao were merely comparable to the insights of ordinary World-level cultivators. They weren't even close to being a match for Ning and the others in this regard.
"Its insights into the Dao are quite ordinary! The problem is that it is incredibly fast and possesses overwhelming physical power." Ning's eyelids twitched slightly. "Its body is incredibly tough. No wonder everyone says that the corpse of a golden Oddbat is a priceless treasure. Its various parts can be used to forge Eternal weapons."
The claws, fangs, and tail of a golden Oddbat were all comparable to Eternal weapons. Its other parts were slightly weaker but still formidable. For example, its wings were soft but resilient, while its skin was quite smooth. Its entire body was terrifyingly strong, granting it incredible speed and strength. When it had flapped its enormous wings just now, it actually hadn't used any intricate techniques. It had relied on its overwhelming superiority in strength to send those three cultivators halfway to Hell!
"Cultivators are truly useless." The golden Oddbat spread out its enormous wings once more as it stood there atop the flying vessel. It turned its cold, insidious gaze towards the other cultivators on the boat. All of the cultivators began to feel a sense of despair. What were they going to do? How were they supposed to stop it?
"How boring. All of you can go die now. Ahahaha…" The golden Oddbat let out an ear-piercing laugh as it suddenly pounced towards the nearest cultivator, who hurriedly beat a frantic retreat in terror.
Swish!
A blinding streak of sword-light suddenly pierced through the air towards the golden Oddbat, colliding directly against the golden Oddbat's sharp claws.
Clang! The golden Oddbat was brought to a momentary halt.
As for Ning, he couldn't help but stumble backwards by three steps, each step so heavy as to cause the entire vessel to tremble.
Ning's eyes narrowed as he stared at the golden Oddbat. He was now supported by the azureflower mist energy; with its energy supporting him, the additional power granted by the formation was almost negligible. "What terrifying strength. It is far stronger than I am."
The golden Oddbat stopped moving as it turned to stare at Ning, weighing him.
The entire vessel fell silent. All the cultivators turned to focus on this sight.
Ji Ning had manifested three heads and six arms and was wielding six swords. He and the golden Oddbat were staring at each other intently from afar.
The golden Oddbat continued to stare weighingly at Ning, then let out another one of those ear-piercing laughs. Its voice echoed throughout the surrounding void as it said, "I didn't expect to find someone so powerful here. You should be the most powerful person on this vessel."
"That's brother Darknorth."
"Fellow Daoist Darknorth!"
The other cultivators were overjoyed upon seeing this. They were stunned at the level of power which Ning had just unleashed, but they were also filled with a powerful urge and hope to stay alive!
"But it is useless. You will still die." The golden Oddbat let out that bizarre laugh. "All the cultivators on this vessel will die!" As it laughed, it transformed into a blur as it pounced straight towards Ning.
"Kill!" Ning didn't back down in the slightest, charging straight forward with six Violetjewels at the ready.
Ning was like a streak of light while the golden Oddbat was like an illusory blur. The two instantly collided against each other! Ning possessed astonishing speed and strength, but the golden Oddbat was superior to even Ning in these two aspects.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The two instantly clashed dozens of times. No one dared to draw near the two of them.
BOOM! An enormous explosion rang out as the golden tail and the sword-light both struck the deck of the flying vessel at the same time, knocking it askew and flipping it over. All of the cultivators and Oddbats were sent flying out of the vessel. They all hurriedly moved to avoid Ji Ning and the golden Oddbat, who had now truly begun to fight.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 23 – Terror
The Dao-tree Ji Ning's Jindan chaos region was now more than ninety thousand meters tall. His Sword World was incredibly powerful, and the six Violetjewels in his hands were Eternal weapons of ridiculous power. Ning also had the azureflower mist energy reinforcing him, making his body comparable to that of a Daolord of the First Step, and yet…
BOOM!
Ning was sent staggering backwards, but his swordplay remained orderly. He stared intently at the distant golden Oddbat.
"It is simply too physically strong." Ning felt genuine amazement in his heart. "It clearly has terrible combat techniques, but it is still able to suppress me."
The golden Oddbat's wings were spread, but its gaze was turned towards the other cultivators in the distance as it watched those ninety-plus cultivators fight against its many children. The cultivators were slowly gaining the upper hand as the number of black Oddbats began to decline, causing the golden Oddbat to feel rather impatient.
"Hmph, I'll let you stay alive for a bit longer." The golden Oddbat let out an ear-piercing screech as it shot out in a solitary arc, seeking to move past Ning and assault the other cultivators.
"What?!"
"Not good!"
The ninety-plus cultivators had all been paying attention to the battle between the golden Oddbat and Ning. They were all shocked to see the golden Oddbat head their way.
They all knew how incredibly fast the golden Oddbat was. Previously, the golden Oddbat had simply been so proud and arrogant that it had stood there without moving, allowing those three World Gods to assault it. It had battled against Ning for quite some time before it began to grow impatient. It set aside its pride, intending to move around Ning and slay the other cultivators instead.
"No running!" Ning let out a loud roar as the Thunderlight Wings suddenly appeared on his back. The Thunderlight Wings fluttered slightly, causing his speed to dramatically increase.
"Halt!" A dazzling, eye-catching streak of crimson-gold lightning suddenly shot out of Ning's forehead. This streak of crimson-gold lightning moved with incredible speed, far faster than the golden Oddbat itself. The lightning furiously smote the golden Oddbat with a direct blow! This was one of the streaks of [Novessence Thunder] which Ning had mastered.
Crackle! Hiss! The crimson-gold lightning completely surrounded the golden Oddbat's body. The golden Oddbat was so powerful that it could completely ignore the damage caused by the crimson-gold lightning, but the lightning had a powerful restrictive effect on it. It was like a supreme World God was doing everything he could to keep his arms wrapped around it, causing the golden Oddbat's movements to be encumbered.
Ning was incredibly fast to begin with, his speed being comparable to that of ordinary Daolords. Now that he was using his Thunderlight Wings, the two were fairly close in speed. Given that golden Oddbat was being slowed down by Ning's [Novessence Thunder, Ning was immediately able to catch up.
"Damn." The golden Oddbat was enraged.
"Good!"
"Well done, brother Darknorth!"
"Fellow Daoist Darknorth truly is an admirable figure."
Shouts of delight rang out from afar, as well as some laughter.
As Ning caught up to the golden Oddbat, his six Eternal weapons struck out like six blood-colored wyrms as he furiously assaulted the creature, once more stopping it in its tracks.
"Everyone, help me out by getting rid of the other Oddbats as soon as possible," Ning called out laughingly.
"Right on!"
"These Oddbats are easy to deal with."
"Hurry up, fellow Daoists. It isn't easy for brother Darknorth to fend off the golden Oddbat!" The cultivators could now see hope, and so they did their absolute best to wipe out the remaining Oddbats.
As for Ning, he continued to battle against the golden Oddbat in single combat while using the [Novessence Thunder] to bind it. The power of that crimson-gold lightning was completely applied to the golden Oddbat's body, causing it to be slowed down slightly. Ning couldn't help but sigh in amazement at how tough its body was.
"If I were to use the Elementum Waterflame Gourd and release the lightning it holds, it would definitely release more power than my [Novessence Thunder] possesses." Ning couldn't help but secretly sigh. "The problem is that it would just be one level of power stronger. I would at most have the upper hand but I still would find it difficult to actually kill this golden Oddbat."
The Elementum Waterflame Gourd held two types of Dao lightning. Dao lightning was capable of sweeping aside almost anyone below the Daolord level of power! However, it was only capable of wiping out master-class World Gods in one strike; it was at most just slightly stronger than the [Novessence Thunder] which Ning had put such effort into creating.
When these two types of water-attribute and fire-attribute Dao lightning joined together, they would be significantly stronger, most likely capable of slaying supreme World Gods in one blow! They were capable of heavily injuring transcendent World Gods and have a major restrictive effect on Daolords of the First Step. Alas, the golden Oddbat was simply too physically tough, and its claws, fangs, and tail were comparable to Eternal weapons in might. Even its skin and its wings, some of its weaker body parts, were comparable to Dao weapons. It would be extremely difficult for Ning to injure it with his sword.
"In addition, the Elementum Waterflame Gourd is an important treasure. I spent five hundred and fifty thousand cubes of chaos nectar for it! If I was to use it, everyone would be able to recognize it right away. Elementum Waterflame Gourds are incredibly famous Eternal weapons. If they recognize it… once these cultivators reach the other end of the Sea of Darkness, word of it being in my possession will spread and I'll probably be in a lot of trouble."
Although they were currently on the same vessel, a treasure worth over half a million cubes of chaos nectar was alluring for even many Samsara Daolords, to say nothing of World-level cultivators. The reason why Ning had purchased this treasure was to use it as a killer trump card! He would only use it in dire situations, when his very life was at stake. But of course, he also had it since he would need those two types of Dao lightning when training in the second part of the [Novessence Thunder].
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
"Ahaha, this is fun."
"Kill them all."
Thanks to Ning tying down the golden Oddbat, the other cultivators slowly began to gain the upper hand as more and more Oddbats perished.
"Fellow Daoist Darknorth, just hold it off for a while longer. We'll be ready to reinforce you soon."
"We'll be there shortly!"
The cultivators began to pick up the pace in killing the Oddbats.
As for the golden Oddbat, it let out a furious, ear-piercing screech. After having been tied down for so long, it finally couldn't take it any longer. It roared furiously, "Let's go, children! Let's go! Go!"
Boom! The golden Oddbat flapped its massive wings, creating a terrifying spatial tempest as it began to flee off into the distance.
The nine silver Oddbats and the few surviving black Oddbats all hastily fled as well, moving at incredibly fast speeds.
Ning stared as the golden Oddbat disappeared into the distance. He didn't try to chase it. If he did, he would probably be surrounded and attacked by all of the Oddbats! In addition, these Oddbats were born and bred here in the Sea of Darkness. They knew it better than any cultivator. If Ning really did give chase, he might well be led into and trapped within a dangerous part of the Sea.
"It is over." Ning let out a sigh of relief. Being able to force these Oddbats into retreating was already an excellent outcome. Ning's goal was to reach Vastheaven Palace, after all. It wasn't to kill a golden Oddbat.
Atop the flying vessel.
The cultivators had all returned to the flying vessel, which once more began to accelerate.
"Brother Darknorth, it was all thanks to you that we made it. If it wasn't for you, we would probably all be dead."
"Haha, I'm embarrassed to say this, but all this time I felt certain that I was one of the strongest cultivators on this vessel. Now, it seems, brother Darknorth is capable of defeating me in a single blow."
"We actually encountered a transcendent World God on this trip, eh? This truly is a rare occasion. Come, fellow Daoist Darknorth. Let me offer you a toast!"
The vessel was filled with the sound of laughter.
Transcendent World Gods, when supported by the power of their formation, would be comparable to Daolords of the First Step. Thus, most of them felt certain that Ning was a transcendent World God. What they didn't realize was that Ning's own azureflower mist energy was actually far stronger than their formation, which had provided him with just a negligible amount of assistance.
Ning, of course, wouldn't tell them the truth. This was his secret.
"Without everyone else helping out, I probably would've ended up dying after being encircled by the golden Oddbat and thousands of other Oddbats." Ning also laughed as he chatted and drank with the other cultivators.
The spatial waves within the Sea of Darkness remained as savage as ever. The ninety-eight cultivators continued to fly through the Sea within their vessel, chatting, drinking, and celebrating their victory. But just at this moment…
Whoooooosh.
An enormous, pitch-black opening suddenly appeared within the spatial waves around them. The opening was over a million kilometers in size… and a head slowly began to emerge from within it.
This head was utterly enormous, at least a million kilometers in size as well. Its two eyes were like two enormous blazing suns, and it was staring right at the flying vessel.
"What?!"
"Good heavens…"
"What is…"
The carousing cultivators aboard the flying vessel all stared wide-eyed in horror, as didi Ning. They could feel their truesouls quivering in terror as an incredible, indescribable sense of danger crashed down upon them. This was a warning that the Destiny Sea was sending to them…
Whoosh. The enormous head opened its mouth, causing a pitch-black corridor of spacetime to appear. All of the cultivators were instantly drawn inwards towards its mouth. Ning was the strongest cultivator present, and he tried to activate his Thunderlight Wings to escape, but even he found it impossible to shake off that sucking effect.
The entire flying vessel was swallowed into the spacetime corridor of darkness located within the creature's mouth, as were all ninety-eight cultivators.
Spacetime was in a state of absolute flux within this dark corridor. Soon, the vessel and all ninety-eight cultivators completely vanished.
The blazing, sun-sized eyes of the titanic head swept the surrounding area with a glance, then slowly shrank back into the enormous dark cavity from whence it came. That enormous dark hole then vanished as well and the Sea of Darkness once more returning to its regular appearance.
However, the ninety-eight cultivators and the flying vessel they had been in had completely vanished from the Sea of Darkness.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 24 – Taken By Force
A territory located unfathomably far away from the Sea of Darkness.
An enormous rhombus-shaped gemstone was located atop a chaos star, emanating ripples of power.
"I need to get closer to it. I can still move a bit closer."
More than a hundred World-level cultivators had been gathered here atop this chaos star. Their gazes blazed as they stared at the enormous rhombus jewel that had been firmly planted into the ground off in the distance. The ripples emanating from the jewel were being transmitted straight into their minds.
"A karmic fortune has been placed before me. I have to grasp it."
"I can keep moving closer."
The World-level cultivators were like children who had just started to learn how to walk. Every single step they took was incredibly difficult, and the closer they moved to it, the more invisible pressure was applied to their very truesouls. Despite this, they continued to strive to move closer to the rhombus so that they might more clearly hear the voice that was hidden within those ripples of power.
The voice was like the voice of the Dao itself.
Whoosh.
An enormous, pitch-black hole that was over a million kilometers in size suddenly and silently opened above that chaos star. A titanic head slowly emerged from within the hole, and it stared with its two blazing sun-like eyes towards the cultivators below it.
"What the…"
The hundred-plus World-level cultivators were disturbed from their reverie. They had been consumed by delight upon encountering this tremendous karmic fortune, but they now all stared upwards in shock at the terrifying head that had just appeared. Their truesouls were all shaking in terror!
Whoosh.
The enormous head opened its lips and inhaled, an enormous pitch-black spatial corridor appearing within its mouth. The hundred-plus World-level cultivators atop the chaos star were all drawn towards it, unable to resist its power in the slightest. They were all sucked into the spatial corridor, and even the rhombus jewel that had been planted onto the star was drawn in as well.
Gulp. The enormous head shut its mouth, then retreated back into the pitch-black hole which closed behind it.
Utter stillness was left behind in its wake.
The Gelian Territory. This was one of the territories located beyond the control of the Dao Alliance. The Aeonians were in control of this territory.
Two beautifully dressed major powers were striding through the chaos of space.
Spacetime twisted and distorted around them. They seemed to be moving slowly, but each step they took allowed them to travel a far greater distance than World-level cultivators travelled through teleportation.
"Gorsch, you were actually willing to let little Gorho become apprenticed to me? That means if he becomes Awakened in the future, he'll be considered at least partially my subordinate." A dazzling beautiful woman dressed in long green robes chuckled merrily as she spoke.
"In all my years, I've never seen any descendants of mine who have more potential than Little Gorho. Although he is currently just a World-level cultivator, I've raised him and taught him so that he is capable of battling against Daolords of the First Step. And that's not even his limit! His greatest skill lies in the Dao of Spacetime… and you are one of the top two masters of spacetime in our entire Aeonian race. Only by apprenticing himself to you can he truly reach the greatest heights possible in the Dao of Spacetime." The silver-haired, middle-aged man had a look of desire in his eyes.
The silver-haired man continued, "The stronger one is prior to being Awakened, the more they will benefit after their Awakening, and the more potential they will have! I've watched as little Gorho grew up and taught him step-by-step. It is true that as your disciple, he'll be considered as half your subordinate… but for the sake of his future growth, I decided to let you take advantage of me."
"You are making it sound as though I'm taking huge advantage of you." The green-robed woman laughed. "I'll have to spend a lot of effort in teaching him, you know?"
"There aren't many of us Aeonians, and there are even fewer descendants with as much potential as this child. Little Gorho can Awaken himself whenever he wishes, but been intentionally suppressing himself. Don't pretend you haven't won the lottery by gaining a disciple of such potential," the silver-haired man said.
"Let's make things clear from the get-go. Since he is going to be my disciple, I'm going to keep him by my side for a full chaos cycle," the green-robed woman said. "You are not permitted to interfere."
"Fine." The silver-haired man assented.
The two chatted and laughed as they strolled through the void of space, quickly reaching a different chaosworld.
"Eh!?" The green-haired woman's face tightened. A speck of golden light appeared in each of her eyes that shone down upon the surrounding region of spacetime. A solemn look on her face, she immediately said, "The spacetime in the surrounding area has been forcibly distorted."
"Forcibly distorted?" The silver-haired man's face tightened as well. He immediately sent out his senses to scan the entire chaosworld.
"Where's little Gorho?"
"Why is he missing?"
The silver-haired man was stunned. "Why are even his servants… wait, even the protectors of this chaosworld are missing?" According to the rules he had set down, the protectors were absolutely forbidden from leaving without his permission as this was an incredibly important part of the territory of King Gorsch.
But now, all of the World-level cultivators had gone missing from this chaosworld, including his most cherished descendant Gorho.
"My subordinates would never leave without my permission. Someone must've slaughtered them or captured them." Flames began to flicker around the silver-haired man's body, and his eyes became filled with a murderous look. "If spacetime has been distorted here, we should be able to trace the ripples of spacetime to locate the person who did this. I'm going to kill him. I'm going to KILL HIM."
"You can't kill him…" The green-haired woman had an ugly look on her face.
"Eh?" The silver-haired man turned to look at her.
"I can't find any traces at all. The person who twisted spacetime here is even stronger than me in the Dao of Spacetime," the green-haired woman explained. "There's no way at all for you to stop him if he chooses not to fight you."
"Even stronger than you in the Dao of Spacetime?" The silver-haired man could hardly believe it.
"Who on earth did this?" The green-robed woman frowned. "Could it be the Dao Alliance? There's only a few members of the Dao Alliance capable of doing such a thing, but would they really lower themselves to act against little Gorho? They wouldn't, right…?"
A blazingly hot chaos star. An enormous pitch-black hole suddenly appeared above it, followed by that gigantic head slowly emerging from within it. It opened its mouth and began to suck in the entire chaos star. The chaos star transformed into a blazing beast of fire with an aura of incredible power. Struggling to break free, it let out a furious roar: "Who are you?!"
"Time to come home, child." The gigantic beast-head gave a simple reply, then sucked the blazing creature towards the pitch-black spatial corridor that had appeared in its mouth.
Whoosh. The blazing creature wasn't able to fight back at all. It flew closer and closer towards the spatial corridor, shrinking in size as it did before finally being completely sucked in.
The gigantic head retreated from the black hole, which quickly closed behind it.
"How diverting." A human-shaped figure that was completely formed out of water was seated in the emptiness of space, staring curiously at the world around it.
Whoosh. A pitch-black hole appeared next to it, followed by the emergence of that titanic head.
"Little newborn child…"
The titanic head opened up its mouth and began to draw in the watery figure.
"Uh? Eh?" The watery humanoid figure found itself irresistibly pulled towards that spatial corridor. It watched with curiosity, not trying to fight back at all. This was because it didn't sense even the slightest bit of enmity or hostility from the seemingly terrifying creature before it.
During this period of time, many powerful creatures mysteriously vanished from throughout the Endless Territories.
When Ji Ning and the other cultivators aboard the flying vessel were drawn into the spacetime corridor, they could sense space and time twisting around them. It was quite similar to the feeling of being transported through a spacetime transfer array.
"This is a spacetime transfer. Where are we being transferred to?" Ning and the other cultivators were all filled with unease. The behemoth which had sucked them in was simply too powerful.
Whoosh. Spacetime suddenly stabilized once more.
"Where are we?" Ning could now see that there were at the peak of a towering mountain. They had been teleported to this incredibly large mountain, and there were many other living beings here already. More than half were cultivators, and there had to be over a thousand cultivators gathered here.
Ning and the other ninety-seven cultivators first put away the flying vessel, then looked around cautiously.
"What is this place?"
"Fellow Daoists, where are we? How do we leave this place?" World God Xiang Lu immediately queried the cultivators who had arrived here before them.
A black-robed cultivator glanced at World God Xiang Lu, then slowly shook his head. "There's no way to leave. This mountain peak is surrounded by restrictive spells. You won't be able to take so much as a single step off of the mountain. As for the mountain itself, we aren't able to damage it in the slightest. To tell you the truth, we just got here a few hours before you did."
When Ning and the others heard this, their faces tightened slightly as pensive looks appeared in their eyes.
Right at this moment, yet another hundred-plus cultivators suddenly appeared out of nowhere. All of the cultivators looked quite lost and uneasy.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 25 – The Most Powerful Kingdom
Ji Ning stared at his surroundings. Many of the cultivators who had arrived alongside him tested out the borders of the mountain peak, only to find that it was indeed surrounded by invisible restrictive spells. As for flying upwards, they were only able to fly roughly three hundred meters into the air before being unable to move another inch.
"What sort of restrictive spell is this?" Ning gave the invisible barrier in front of him a push. Even when Ning applied his azureflower mist energy, he was completely unable to budge the barrier in the slightest.
"That mysterious behemoth felt absolutely terrifying. Not even big brother Solesky or Daolord Badlands gave me a sensation of such absolute terror." Ning was still amazed by this. Both Daolord Solesky and Daolord Badlands were extremely powerful Daolords of the Endless Territories. "Perhaps it was because the two of them were very kind towards me, which was why I didn't sense much danger from them."
"Master! Master!" Su Youji appeared by Ning's side.
"Mm?" Ning looked at her.
Su Youji said urgently, "Master, I heard some of the cultivators say that they are from the Springman Territory and appeared here after being swallowed by that behemoth. Other cultivators said that they were from the Vastheaven Territory before being swallowed…"
Ning was startled.
The Springman Territory? Never heard of it.
The Vastheaven Territory? That was where he was headed towards.
They had all been swallowed by that behemoth? For a single behemoth of such terrifying power to exist in the Endless Territories was already quite impressive. Ning refuse to believe that multiple such beasts existed.
"After the behemoth swallowed us, it formed a spatial corridor within its mouth." Ning reflected on this. "It would appear as though this mysterious behemoth is extremely, extremely skilled in the Dao of Spacetime. This might be the reason why it was able to appear within so many places in the Endless Territories in such a brief period of time."
"Perhaps it isn't actually that much more powerful than my big brother Solesky. It is probably just incredibly talented in spacetime." This was what Ning told himself to console himself, but he also understood just how terrifying this creature had to be in order for it to appear in so many places at once.
It must be understood that Daolord Solesky had to physically, laboriously travel all the way from the Vastheaven Territory to the Badlands Territory, making usage of many spacetime transfer arrays on the way! The ability to effortlessly appear throughout the Endless Territories was an utterly inconceivable ability.
Ning consoled himself, telling himself that it was possible that the mysterious behemoth wasn't really that powerful. If this was the case, his chances of escaping would be a bit better. And yet, deep in his heart he knew the truth…
That the more likely possibility was that this mysterious behemoth was extremely, extremely powerful! Far more powerful than Daolord Solesky! It must be understood that Daolord Allgod was an example of someone who vastly outstripped Daolord Solesky. In fact, he had even been capable of chasing down and assaulting Eternal Emperors!
"What should I do? How should I leave this place?" Ning began to grow restless and nervous.
Was he supposed to just give up on his true body? Should he allow his clone in the Badlands Territory to once more work on rebuilding his main true body? It would be easy for him to rebuild his true body, but all of the treasures it was carrying… the six Eternal swords, the three Mirrorsnow Paintings, the Elementum Waterflame Gourd… there was no way to get them back.
"Where there is a will, there is a way." Ning decided to just wait patiently. "Since the behemoth went to the trouble of pulling us to this place, it won't just kill us for no reason."
Time flowed on, day by day.
One day, two days, three days… more and more cultivators appeared on the mountain peak, as did many other types of living creatures.
Twelve days passed in the blink of an eye.
More than thirty thousand cultivators were now present at the mountain peak, as well as many other living creatures that were usually quite rare. There were plant-based lifeforms, flame-based lifeforms, stone-based lifeforms, and more. All of them were incredibly powerful, and there were thousands of them gathered here. These were some of the rarest types of lifeforms in the Endless Territories!
"Master, it seems as though no one else is coming." Su Youji whispered softly to Ning from her position by his side.
"Yes. Half a day has gone by without any additional newcomers. I imagine we shall soon discover why we have been brought to this place." Ning continued to wait and watch patiently.
More time passed, enough to brew a kettle of tea.
Whoosh. Whoosh.
Two streaks of light suddenly appeared in the skies, moving towards the mountain peak with terrifying speed.
"What terrifying speed." The many cultivators and other creatures on the mountain peak were all stunned. Those two streaks of light were simply too fast. Ning had previously witnessed other fast creatures such as the golden Oddbat, but there was simply no comparison!
Boom! Boom!
The two streaks of light landed onto the mountain peak, causing the entire mountain to tremble. Only now could everyone see them clearly.
It was a pair of powerful experts garbed in silver armor, one male and one female. The silver-armored man's armor was covered with the imprint of a thunderbolt, whereas the silver-armored woman's armor was covered with the imprint of a sword. Both emanated auras of tremendous power and majesty, causing the thirty thousand cultivators and other lifeforms to feel as though they could hardly breathe.
"Such power." Ning could sense incredible danger radiating from the two. Although the two didn't radiate as much danger as that mysterious behemoth, he was still certain that they could easily wipe out everyone present.
Behind each of the silver-armored duo was a pair of black-armored retainers.
The four black-armored retainers also had auras of tremendous power… and their aura was that of Samsara Daolords! Still, the auras weren't that powerful; Ning felt as though they didn't seem significantly stronger than the aura the golden Oddbat had.
"You have been selected by the almighty Hegemon from throughout the Endless Territories and delivered to this place. Quite a few of you possess tremendous potential." The silver-armored man's voice was deep, and it shook the entire mountain when he spoke. "Do not panic. For you to have been brought here, to the most powerful kingdom of the entire Endless Territories, is something of a tribulation, but it is an even greater blessing."
When Ning and the others heard this, they all felt stunned.
Selected by the almighty Hegemon?
Was that mysterious behemoth this so-called almighty Hegemon? Ning suspected that this silver-armored man was an incredibly strong Daolord. For him to refer to someone else as an 'almighty Hegemon' was rather incredible. Still, when Ning thought about how that mysterious behemoth had been able to bring so many living beings from throughout the Endless Territories to this place, Ning felt that it made sense.
"The most powerful kingdom of the Endless Territories?" Ning muttered softly, "Can it be even stronger than the Aeonian Kingdom of the Aeonians?"
"Tremendous potential? Was our flying vessel captured because of me?" Ning mused to himself. He wasn't being narcissistic; he was indeed an incredibly talented figure amongst his World-level peers. Even the amount of power he had revealed thus far was already quite shocking.
"Although you have been brought to this place, you are not yet citizens of the Brightshore Kingdom, the most powerful kingdom there is." The silver-armored man said, "If you cannot become one of our citizens, you shall perish! If you wish to survive, you must become one of our citizens."
"I am willing," a cultivator immediately cried out. 'I'm willing to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom!"
Some of the cultivators who had been abducted to this place were incredibly talented monsters like Ji Ning and Gorho, but even more were ordinary cultivators. For example, most of the cultivators who had been on Ning's vessel had wanted to take on Daolord Nihilate as master. They could tell that this mysterious Brightshore Kingdom was incredibly powerful. Most likely, joining it would be every bit as beneficial as becoming apprenticed on Daolord Nihilate.
"Not just anyone is qualified to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom." The silver-armored man glanced sideways at the cultivators as he spoke in a calm voice.
"There are five ways in which you can become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom. The first method and best method is to break through to become a Samsara Daolord. If you do so, you can become one of our citizens."
Ning and the others were rendered speechless upon hearing this.
Become a Samsara Daolord?
Of the thirty thousand-plus cultivators who had been abducted to this place, not a single one was a Samsara Daolord. Breaking through to this level would be incredibly difficult.
"The second method is to be protected by one of our Samsara Daolords! Each Samsara Daolord is permitted to protect three of his or her friends, as well as take on a maximum of ten slaves," the silver-armored man said. "If you are the friend or family member of a Samsara Daolord, you can naturally become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom as well. But of course, if you are willing to become a slave you are also permitted to continue living. Slaves are the lowest-tier members of the Brightshore Kingdom and will be assigned many labors, but at least they will be permitted to remain alive."
Ning and the others frowned. Become slaves? Lowest-tier members of the kingdom? No one would wish for such a thing.
As for Samsara Daolords being able to protect three friends, this rule was most likely put into place because the Brightshore Kingdom understood that Samsara Daolords had people they cared about. However, Ning and the others had just arrived; how could they know any Samsara Daolords?
"The third method is the safest method. Go to the Hydragon Mountain in the Endless Territories and work there as a miner. If you can mine enough ore, you'll be given your freedom and become one of our citizens. However, I have to warn you in advance that generally speaking, World-level cultivators will need to spend a thousand chaos cycles mining ore before they have enough."
"Hydragon Mountain?" Gorho, unnoticed by the other cultivators, frowned slightly. "I heard Father speak of it before. Hydragon Mountain is a legendary place which is the birthplace of the extremely valuable hydragon gems. Supposedly, it has been occupied and monopolized by a mysterious organization. So that mysterious organization is actually this Brightshore Kingdom!"
The silver-armored man swept the cultivators with his gaze, a smile on his lips.
Mine for a thousand chaos cycles?
"I know that none of you are willing to laboriously mine ore for a thousand chaos cycles. However… in the future, many of you will cry and beg for the chance to go mine there." The silver-armored man said calmly, "The fourth option is simple. Survive for a thousand years in the third bugnest. If you are still alive after a thousand years, you can also become one of our citizens."
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 26 – The Choice
"Survive for a thousand years?" All of the cultivators and special lifeforms atop the mountain peak were intrigued. All of them were at the World level and had been abducted to this place. To people like them, a thousand years was nothing. Ji Ning, for example, was going to spend more than six hundred years just traversing the Sea of Darkness.
If they merely had to spend a thousand years to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom and be permitted to live in peace, everyone would be willing to do this.
However, that was assuming they were able to survive for a thousand years. From the sound of things, the third bugnest wasn't a very nice place to be.
The silver-armored man had a hint of a cold smile on his face. "It might sound easy, but I have to warn you that the third bugnest is a place which our Brightshore Kingdom uses for rearing bugbeasts. In fact, it is our third most important nest! It has many powerful bugbeasts within it, some of which are comparable to Samsara Daolords."
The silver-armored man continued, "Some of the bugbeasts there are weak, others are strong. There are even bugbeasts that are my equal in power, and all of them live within the third bugnest."
The silver-armored man laughed. "If you choose this option, the fourth option, you'll have to spend a thousand years living within the third bugnest! If you are lucky enough not to run into any powerful bugbeasts, you might be able to survive for a thousand years with ease! But if you are unlucky and end up encountering some of the stronger bugbeasts, you might die almost instantly. Based on what we've seen in the past, roughly one in ten cultivators will be able to survive option four."
Just one out of ten? The cultivators and special lifeforms atop the mountain peak all felt a sense of pressure.
Even the incredibly strong experts like Ji Ning and Gorho, as well as some of the mysterious lifeforms which possessed incredible power, immediately abandoned the notion of choosing this option.
This option required luck. They were World-level cultivators, and even the most monstrously talented of them were only capable of battling Daolords of the First Step! Bugnest three had many terrifying bugbeasts, and according to the silver-armored man some of the bugbeasts were just as strong as him! If they ran into those bugbeasts, they would most assuredly be doomed!
Truly powerful experts wouldn't be willing to accept such a luck-based outcome.
"The fifth option." A strange smile played around the silver-armored man's lips.
"Let me explain the fifth option." The silver-armored woman spoke out coldly, her voice sharp enough that it seemed to stab into the truesouls of every single cultivator and special lifeform present. "The fifth option is to go live on the Astral Islands. All you need to do is stay alive. The opponents you encounter on the Astral Islands will all be World-level cultivators. You need to battle against them, and in the end the most talented individuals will be allowed to survive and leave."
"Dare I ask what we will need to do on the Astral Islands?" A white-robed, incredibly handsome man who wielded a wooden staff in his hands spoke out.
The silver-armored woman glanced sideways at him then said calmly, "Once you go to the Astral Islands, you'll be told. Simply put, your opponents shall be other World-level cultivators who were similarly abducted from throughout the Endless Territories. Only the most talented cultivators shall survive the island and be allowed to leave it! Roughly one in a hundred will survive."
"What?"
"Only one in a hundred?"
"B-but…"
"This is crazy."
"Everyone there is at the World level?"
All of the cultivators and special lifeforms, as well as the secret descendants of the Aeonians, were shocked upon hearing this.
In truth, Ning and the other extremely powerful figures were all leaning towards the fifth option, because in the fifth option their competition would consist solely of other World-level cultivators. They felt confident that they were far more powerful than the vast majority of their peers. They weren't willing to risk their luck at the third bugnest… but on the other hand, it was true that the casualty rate for the fifth option was a bit too high.
Only one in a hundred would survive?
Even Ning was speechless.
Not even the Dao Alliance would dare to carry on such a competition. Every single World-level cultivator generally had masters or schools who supported them. The only reason the Brightshore Kingdom acted like this was because it had simply abducted outsiders from throughout the Endless Territories without caring about if they died or not. Only they would use such a brutal method to weed out the losers.
"Although I'm powerful, that's just amongst my fellow cultivators. There are quite a few special lifeforms who were abducted to this place as well." Ning's greatest worry was having to deal with the special lifeforms. Some were weak, far weaker than cultivators even though they had some special techniques. Unfortunately, some were monstrously powerful.
Powerful special lifeforms usually were blessed with certain innate abilities that allowed them to be incredibly skilled in certain areas. For example, there were certain special lifeforms skilled in illusions who could possibly outmatch even World-level Heartforce Cultivators. It must be understood that Ning had yet to meet a single World-level Heartforce Cultivator to date!
"Just one in a hundred will survive. My opponents will consist of both the cultivators and the special lifeforms. What should I do? What should I choose?" Ning began to ponder this question.
"Five options. The first three options are very safe." The silver-armored man and the silver-armored woman exchanged a glance. The silver-armored man said casually, "Become a Samsara Daolord, receive the protection of a Samsara Daolord, or become an eternal slave to a Samsara Daolord! Of course, you can also choose to go mining. These are all options with no risk to them."
Very few would choose the first three options.
Becoming a Samsara Daolord wasn't something you could do just because you wanted it.
Receiving the protection of a Samsara Daolord wasn't that likely.
Become a slave? No one was willing to do such a thing. Few to no World-level cultivators would voluntarily become the slave of another. They all knew that becoming a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom would represent a tremendous blessing, but becoming a slave of the lowest caste meant that they probably would have no future prospects.
Mine for a thousand chaos cycles? That was way too long.
"The fourth option is to survive in the third bugnest for a thousand years. Roughly one in ten will survive." The silver-armored man continued, "The fifth option is go to the Astral Islands and compete against your peers. One in a hundred will survive."
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
The silver-armored man waved his hand, causing four streams of light to instantly appear and partition off the mountain peak.
"Those who choose the second option, enter the first region. Those who choose the third option, enter the second region. This region is for the fourth option. This region is for the fifth option." The silver-armored man casually pointed to each of the partitions in turn, then swept his gaze across everyone present atop the mountain. "Choose your paths."
Everyone atop the mountain peak began to move. Many were hesitating, but the silver-armored duo didn't rush anyone. They just stood there and waited quietly.
Slowly, people began to make their choices.
A cultivator stepped into the second region. This represented a decision to go spent roughly a thousand chaos cycles in the mines. Only then would they have enough ore to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom."
"I'm too weak. My chances of surviving either the third bugnest or the Astral Islands are both too low." The cultivator shook his head as he stood there.
After he made his choice, quite a few other cultivators began to make their choices as well. Most cultivators chose the third, fourth, or fifth options.
"Master, what should we do? What choice should we make?" Su Youji sent mentally.
"I'm choosing the fifth option," Ning replied mentally. "You?"
This was the only choice Ning could make. There was no way he would choose the first three options, because he had to make it to Vastheaven Palace within a single chaos cycle! He'd only be allowed to leave after becoming a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom. There was no way Ning could waste time mining, and there was obviously no way he would be willing to become another's slave. He also didn't have the ability to become a Samsara Daolord right away.
As for the bugnest, that was purely a matter of luck. Ning absolutely wouldn't leave his own destiny up to luck. In the end, he was more confident in his own abilities.
"The fifth option?" Su Youji hesitated momentarily. "Then I will choose the fifth option as well."
"No need to push yourself that hard. This is a life-altering decision. Choose whichever option suits you the most," Ning said.
"I choose the fifth option." Su Youji gritted her teeth. "I know that I'm fairly weak, but with those bugbeasts you loaned me I should be able to hold my own. I'm unwilling to choose any of the other options."
Ning nodded. As he saw it, most likely many of the cultivators would elect to choose the fifth option. Most of them would rather battle against other cultivators of the same level than to waste countless years of their life, become an eternal slave, or put everything up to luck.
Ning suddenly produced a bracelet then handed it to Su Youji. "Youji, this holds those eighteen Hellwind Golems. They won't be of much use to me, but if you use them and your fifty-one bugbeasts you should have at least some chance of surviving this Astral Islands. I've already ordered the Hellwind Golems to obey you in all things. You'll easily be able to bind them."
"Master, they will be of help to you." Su Youji began to grow nervous. She knew exactly how dangerous the fifth option would be, given that only one in a hundred would survive. Even special lifeforms would be taking part!
"Just take it,' Ning repeated.
Su Youji stared at the white-robed youth. At first, she had only elected to become Ji Ning's retainer because of how monstrously talented he was. However, after the two spent more time together she slowly began to understand what type of a person Ji Ning truly was. Ji Ning looked peaceful and relaxed, but he wouldn't readily acknowledge others. Once he did, however, he truly would treat that person as a lifelong friend.
Su Youji had always sensed that something was perpetually weighing on Ji Ning's mind. She had tried to explore this topic but had never been able to make any progress.
"Let's go." Ning placed the bracelet in Su Youji's hands, then strode towards the fifth option's region. Su Youji nodded, following by his side.
More than thirty thousand cultivators and thousands of special lifeforms. Each made their own choices.
What truly surprised Ning was that twenty-three cultivators and two special lifeforms actually chose the second option. It must be understood that this was everyone's first visit to this place. No one knew any of the local Samsara Daolords, which meant choosing the second option represented choosing to become a slave.
"Anything really can happen, I suppose," Ning mused.
There were benefits to becoming a slave as well. You would become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom, albeit one of the lowest-tier members, and would gain at least a modicum of access to the Brightshore Kingdom's secrets.
The third option, mining. More than a thousand cultivators and a hundred special lifeforms chose this option.
The fourth option, surviving the bugnest. More than five thousand cultivators and two hundred special lifeforms chose this option.
The fifth option, surviving the Astral Islands. All the remaining individuals chose this option.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 27 – Six Strata
Those who chose the other options were all escorted off by the four black-armored retainers. As for those who chose to attempt the Astral Islands, they were escorted by the silver-armored duo.
Actually, it wasn't really 'escorting'. They were simply dragged straight into an estate-treasure.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The silver-armored man and woman flew off the mountain peak and towards a different part of the Brightshore Kingdom. They physically flew because it was impossible to teleport within the Brightshore Kingdom; flying was the only option! The flight would take quite a few days.
The eleventh day of their journey.
"Eh? I sense a disturbance." Ji Ning and thirty thousand-plus cultivators and special lifeforms were still within the estate-world. Ning could suddenly sense that his three Mirrorsnow Paintings were resonating with something far off in the distance. "Is there another Mirrorsnow Painting within the Brightshore Kingdom? I wonder if this is the one I need."
After the silver-armored duo flew past this region, a strange alien lifeform with green reptilian skin suddenly emerged from the waters of the lake below. The creature raised his head to stare towards the skies, locating the silver-armored duo which was now billions of kilometers away. When the creature saw the silver armor, his face changed. "Was that a Mirrorsnow Painting? Those two major powers come from the Twelve Palaces. It should be carried by one of the World-level cultivators they abducted and are now escorting. Damn. I've already left the Astral Islands. There's no way back."
Although Ning could sense the Mirrorsnow Painting, there was nothing he could do. In the end, they all spent more than a month and a half in the estate-world.
Whoosh.
Suddenly, all the cultivators and special lifeforms were teleported out of the estate-world.
"Where am I?" Ning and the others all stared curiously at their surroundings.
Before them was an enormous dark abyss that devoured all light, making it impossible for any of them to see to the bottom of this abyss.
Directly above the abyss hovered a series of islands, each of which was merely three hundred meters or so in size. There were hundreds of thousands of these levitating islands! The dense cluster hung there in midair, continuously swiveling as they did so. Some were higher in the air than the others.
The bottom stratum held more than 99% of the islands. Ning estimated that there had to be more than three hundred thousand islands there!
The second stratum held roughly twenty thousand islands.
The third stratum held three thousand islands.
The fourth stratum held a hundred islands.
The fifth stratum held merely twelve islands.
The sixth stratum was the highest stratum, and it held only a single island!
"These are the Astral Islands." The silver-armored man pointed at the levitating islands. "Every single Astral Island has a World-level cultivator!"
"Every one?" Ning could hear the others all murmuring. That meant more than three hundred thousand World-level cultivators were gathered here.
"The cultivators of the Astral Islands can only be promoted when they challenge cultivators on the same stratum or a higher stratum," the silver-armored man said. "If you can gain ten consecutive victories against someone of the same level as you, you'll be promoted to the next higher island. Win ten more times in a row, and you'll be promoted once again. If you lose so much as a single fight… if you are lucky you will survive, but you'll still be demoted by one level."
Everyone's faces turned pale.
Ning stared at the levitating islands. He finally understood what these levitating islands truly represented. The only island on the sixth stratum held a cultivator who had defeated at least ten of the cultivators on the fifth stratum before advancing to the sixth stratum. After doing so… others might challenge him, but he would have no one else to challenge.
"Dare I ask, what must we do to become citizens of the Brightshore Kingdom?" A cultivator spoke out right away.
"Don't be impatient." The silver-armored man smiled. "Choosing the Astral Islands was actually the best choice. Those who chose to become slaves have lost their futures, while those who went into the mines shall be there for a thousand chaos cycles. I'm amazed anyone would even consider those two choices. I really wonder what the hell they were thinking. As for those who chose the bugbeast nests… they probably doubted themselves and their level of strength, which was why they chose to test their luck."
The silver-armored man looked at them. "All of you here, however, possess self-confidence and determination. You chose the path that has a 1% rate of survival."
The silver-armored man continued, "You'll engage in multiple duels here on the Astral Islands. If you want to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom, the answer is actually quite a simple one. So long as you can acquire a complete legacy, you'll become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom."
"Acquire a complete legacy?" All of the cultivators and special lifeforms present were puzzled.
"Right. Each time you defeat a foe on the Astral Islands, you'll gain a legacy heirloom which they possess," The silver-armored man said. "For example, a legacy created by a powerful Heartforce Cultivator might have been spread across 3600 legacy treasures. If you can gain all 3600 pieces and piece together the complete legacy, you'll be able to become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom."
"A heartforce legacy?" Everyone present, Ning included, was shaken and excited.
How could a legacy described as something created by a 'powerful Heartforce cultivator' by this mighty Daolord possibly be a simple one? It must be understood that there were a number of Elder Gods and Ancestral Immortals who were skilled in heartforce, but there were very few World-level cultivators of heartforce. As for Samsara Daolords who possessed heartforce? They were even more rare.
"Naturally. But of course, any such heartforce legacy would be spread across 3600 different treasures. This would be considered one of the most truly top-tier legacies. There are many other legacies that are merely spread out across a thousand legacy treasures. There are also some that are spread across five hundred or two hundred treasures. Once you reach the Astral Islands, you'll easily be able to detect which legacy treasure is located on which island, and you can go challenge the person who has what you want. But of course, that's only if you are qualified to request the duel. The sole cultivator on the sixth stratum, for example, isn't qualified to challenge anyone. He has to wait for others to challenge him.
"In short! If you can piece together a complete legacy, you can request permission to leave and become a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom. If you piece together two complete legacies, you absolutely must depart."
The silver-armored man suddenly laughed. "But of course, you can always do what that person on the sixth stratum has done. He acquired a complete legacy, lost a few pieces of it on purpose, then won a second complete legacy, then lost a few more pieces of it… and as a result, he slowly built up a library of eight different legacies."
"What?"
"You can do that?"
Ning and the others were instantly rendered speechless.
If you pieced together one legacy, you could leave. If you pieced together two, you had to leave. There was actually a loophole?!
"The Astral Islands hold a total of ninety-nine mighty legacies, all of which are incredibly powerful." The silver-armored man laughed. "It is incredibly hard for ordinary citizens of the Brightshore Kingdom to gain access to such powerful legacies. However, ninety-nine priceless legacies are present here at the Astral Islands. Unfortunately, they are spread across many different treasures. If you are strong enough, go forth and defeat the other cultivators and seize their treasures."
The silver-armored man continued, "Remember this! Every day, you are only permitted to engage in a single duel. If you go a full month without a single legacy treasure to your name, you will be put to death. Thus, there's no way you can avoid battle and just relax."
Ning and the others immediately understood.
The losers would have their legacy treasures be seized! If they didn't have so much as a single legacy treasure, the other cultivators wouldn't even bother with them, resulting in them living unmolested lives. However… the Brightshore Kingdom did not wish for this to happen. If you didn't have so much as a single legacy treasure for more than a month, you would perish!
The Brightshore Kingdom would put you to death!
The other World-level cultivators would also try to kill you!
The closer you got to acquiring a full legacy treasure set, the more difficult things would become. For example, if you had 199 legacy treasures and needed just one more, other cultivators might take an interest in you and try to kill you and take everything you had.
"Those who wish to try for the truly top-tier legacies will have an even higher chance of death. Those who go for somewhat weaker legacies will have lower casualties." Ning understood this principle.
"This is a place of both great danger as well as great opportunity. Ninety-nine legacies! Haha, in the Endless Territories you'd risk your life countless times over without getting a chance at such a legacy. Here, every single one of you has a chance! In fact, you can do the same thing which this guy is doing?" The silver-robed man pointed at the the cultivator on the sixth level. "This one has already pieced together eight legacies. If you are strong enough, you can do the same."
"But of course, you'll need to be careful as well. Don't end up dying." The silver-armored man suddenly raised his voice. "Old fellow, create another 31091 astral islands."
"Mm." A deep voice rang out from within the dark abyss.
Boom! Boom! Boom! A series of stars began to suddenly arise from within that pitch-black abyss.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 28 – Arrival
Ji Ning and the others flew past the various astral islands.
"Go." The silver-armored man waved his hand, sending out an awe-inspiring blast of power that pushed at every single World-level cultivator. Even someone like Ning felt that this surge of power was nigh irresistible.
Ning followed that surge of power, allowing it to carry him forward as he flew towards the closest astral island.
"Master." Su Youji's voice rang out in Ning's mind.
Ning turned to look at her.
Su Youji was far off in the distance. She had flown towards an astral island as well, but she was staring at Ning.
"Be careful," Ning sent mentally.
"You too." Su Youji had a look of longing in her eyes.
Ning couldn't help but sigh mentally. There was nothing he could do. Once they had chosen to challenge the trial of the Astral Islands, every single cultivator would have to fend for themselves. There was simply no way for him to continue to protect Su Youji. He'd done everything he could. The rest was up to her now.
The various cultivators and special lifeforms all flew to their own islands, which then quickly descended to the lowest tier of islands. As for the silver-armored man and woman, the two simply watched from afar.
"Although the Hegemon didn't grab that many people from the Endless Territories this time, he still managed to grab a few who have incredible talent and potential." The silver-armored woman smiled.
"Mm." The silver-armored man nodded.
The Brightshore Kingdom was one of the most mysterious and powerful organizations in the Endless Territories. It naturally had its own territory where its countless denizens dwelled, and it had its own World-level cultivators which it reared.
However, every so often the almighty Hegemon would abduct promising figures from throughout the Endless Territories. Generally speaking, he wouldn't grab too many people, less than a hundred thousand. Compared to the vastness of the Endless Territories, this was a fairly small sum and so the other major powers were willing to tolerate his actions. Nobody wished to make an enemy of the Hegemon over something as minor as this.
"How many do you think will be able to make it onto the fifth or sixth levels?" The silver-armored woman asked.
"The fifth level? I'm guessing ten! As for the sixth… that's hard to say. It's possible that none of them will make it." The silver-armored man's gaze turned towards the very apex of the hundreds of thousands of astral islands, at that single solitary island that sat atop the sixth level. "Bertulu… I wonder which of our Twelve Palaces he will end up choosing."
"Most likely it'll be the Palace of the Heart or the Palace of Radiance." The silver-armored woman sighed. "It has been a long, long time since our Brightshore Kingdom has encountered a peerless genius like him. He was originally just a rather intriguing special lifeform. Who would've thought that he would actually become the equal of the Ancient cultivators?"
"Right. The first time I saw Bertulu, I took him for an Ancient cultivator as well." The silver-armored man let out a sigh. "What a dazzling figure! Even the Hegemon is paying attention to him. The Heart Palace and the Radiant Palace are fighting fiercely over him in secret. Both sides hope that Bertulu will join them."
"Unfortunately, he's not skilled in the sword. If he was, I'd be hoping for him to join our Sword Palace." The silver-armored woman shook her head. "Let's go. Our mission is over."
The two glanced a final time at the sole island on the sixth level, then transformed into twin streaks of light that quickly departed. Both of them knew that Bertulu was capable of breaking through to the Samsara Daolord level whenever he wished. Once he made his breakthrough… even though he would merely be a Daolord of the First Step, he would probably be just as strong as most Daolords of the Third Step.
If so, he would be every bit a match for the two of them. Even the Hegemon was paying attention to this peerless genius. The two of them viewed him as they would equals.
Ning was walking through his quiet astral island. This island was merely three hundred meters in size, but it had a graceful little residence that was actually decorated with many unique statues . As soon as Ning had landed within this astral island, it had recognized him as its master.
"From this day forth, I'll be staying here for quite a long period of time."
With but a thought, Ning willed the residence to change in appearance, making it look like the houses he stayed in back when he had lived on Earth.
He pushed open the door to the home. Inside the home, there was actually a reclining sofa. Ning lay down on the sofa, then casually waved his hand, causing a golden book to appear and fly into Ning's hands.
This golden book held records regarding the other three hundred thousand-plus islands. Every single cultivator on those islands held a piece of a legacy!
This book also contained an explanation regarding the ninety-nine precious legacies that were here.
"The number one legacy is the heartforce legacy, a legacy which was created by a Heartforce Cultivator who had reached the Verge of the Daomerge, Daolord Featherdress. This heartforce legacy is mysterious but very powerful. Every single Heartforce Cultivator stands at the very apex of power amongst cultivators of the same level. Daolord Featherdress was once the most powerful Daolord in all the Endless Territories! Alas, he failed his Daomerge. Before dying, he had slew an Eternal Emperor… and this legacy is just as valuable as the legacy of an Eternal Emperor's! It has been separated into 3600 parts. If you gather the 3600 legacy treasures and merge them together, you shall gain access to this legacy."
"The number two legacy is the spacetime legacy, a legacy left behind by the almighty Hegemon himself. Although this is merely the first chapter of the full technique, it will be enough to allow you to roam the Endless Territories without fear. It has been scattered across 1800 different legacy treasures. If you gather all 1800 legacy treasures, you can gain this legacy."
"The number three legacy…"
There was a detailed ranking of all ninety-nine legacies.
The most powerful legacies required a total of 3600 legacy treasures.
The weakest legacies merely required a hundred legacy treasures.
Although Ning was intrigued by quite a few of them, he still shook his head privately. "As expected, this is merely a place for weeding out weak World-level cultivators. The most powerful legacies of the Brightshore Kingdom are not here."
The number two legacy had been left behind by the almighty Hegemon. If this was the complete legacy, it would be an absolutely incredible boon… but alas, it was merely the first chapter.
Ninety-nine legacies in total. The Hegemon had only left behind the number two legacy. The other ninety-eight came from various Daolords. The legacies of a Daolord and the legacies of an Eternal Emperor were completely different things.
The likes of Daolord Featherwing or Daolord Allgod were incredibly powerful, capable of matching or even exceeding Eternal Emperors. However, every single Eternal Emperor was at least on their general level, and some were even more powerful.
By comparison, the four paintings and legacies of Emperor Mirrorsnow were more valuable than these ninety-nine legacies.
That number one legacy, the heartforce legacy, is quite valuable though. I imagine that one is on par with Emperor Mirrorsnow's legacy." Ning carefully read through the entire book.
Ning wanted sword-arts, and there were two types available. One was ranked nineteen, the other ranked seventy-three! Both had been left behind by Daolords.
"If I have the chance, I really do need to try and acquire the fourth Mirrorsnow Painting. As for these sword-arts here? I should try to use them to validate and test my own sword-arts. It should be of some benefit, at least." Ning had long ago found his own path and understanding regarding the sword.
As Ning saw it, the more sword-arts the better. He had studied more than five thousand sword-arts in the Hall of Swords in the Allgod Estate, after all.
"Eh?" Ning's eyes suddenly lit up.
"This one seems to be… not bad at all!" On his second careful reading, Ning's gaze fell upon the ninth-ranked legacy.
The ninth-ranked legacy was the footwork legacy. This was a footwork technique meant for close combat which had been left behind by an unknown major power who had gained certain special insights over lightning.
At first, Ning hadn't paid it much attention as he had focused on searching for heartforce techniques and sword-arts. However, on his second careful read-through he realized how extraordinary this ninth-ranked legacy was.
For a footwork technique to be ranked number nine was extraordinary, in and of itself. This was also a technique that was devised based on lightning. Ning trained in the [Novessence Thunder] and was fairly familiar with lightning; most likely, he would be a good fit for this footwork legacy.
"In battle, I currently rely on my sword-arts and just use my the Thunderlight Wings for support. I don't have any actual, decent footwork techniques." After carefully reading through the book, Ning made up his mind. His first target would be the ninth-ranked footwork technique!
"A newbie?"
"So many newbies."
As Ning and the other World-level cultivators flew towards the astral islands, the many newly created islands began to descend towards the bottom stratum of islands. This naturally attracted the attention of the hundreds of thousands of World-level cultivators who were already present.
These cultivators stood atop their own astral islands, watching from afar. Some began to scan their golden books to gain some basic insights into these newcomers. Each golden book recorded rudimentary information regarding the cultivators on each island and the legacy treasures they possessed.
"I'll wager these newbies are carrying plenty of chaos nectar and treasures."
"Let's see what we can take from them."
"Challenge issued."
"Challenge issued."
Many of the more powerful cultivators were intrigued. The weak ones in their group had been plundered long ago, with some having lost all their magic treasures! These newly arrived cultivators, however, would definitely have quite a few treasures on them.
Life in the Brightshore Kingdom was the same as life anywhere else. If you wanted to live, you'd need treasures.
"I need to issue a challenge right away." There were some cultivators who were extremely powerful but who had lost their treasures to even more powerful cultivators. These people immediately began to issue challenges, as they were in desperate need of treasures! They naturally chose to go after the newcomers.
"A challenge? A challenge from the third stratum?" Ning was relaxing on his sofa, flipping through the information pertaining to the ninety-nine legacies when he suddenly received a challenge notification.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 29 – The First Battle
"It seems a lot of people are interested in newcomers like myself." Ji Ning was in no rush. Instead of answering, he continued to wait patiently as more and more challenges began to accumulate. One… two… three.. four… five…
Apparently, quite a few people were interested in challenging Ning!
In the time needed to boil a kettle of tea, Ning received one challenge from the third stratum, two challenges from the second stratum, and twelve challenges from the bottom stratum!
"A total of fifteen World-level cultivators have challenged me," Ning mused. Per the rules of this place, each World-level cultivator could only issue one challenge each day! Ning was permitted to challenge a different World-level cultivator as well, but if they didn't accept… Ning would have to choose from one of the fifteen challengers. He would have to accept at least one challenge.
In truth, to be challenged by so many people at once was actually quite rare. The only reason why there were so many challenges was because everyone knew that Ji Ning and the others had to be carrying many treasures on them.
Normally, it was entirely possible that days would pass between challenges!
"Who should I choose? The Astral Islands are divided up into six strata. The third stratum is neither high nor low… and there are more than three thousand cultivators on that level. I'll go with this guy." Ning's talent made him bold. Weaker new arrivals would most likely choose someone on the first floor as their first opponent.
Through the golden book, Ning willed for his opponent's message of challenge to be shattered. This represented him accepting the challenge!
There were more than three thousand islands hovering within the third stratum. Within one of those astral islands.
"He accepted? He actually accepted my challenge?" The chubby youth instantly jumped to his feet, a look of wild joy on his face. "Ahahaha, he actually accepted? This is great. It seems that things are finally turning around for me, Pillsaint. Has my luck finally arrived?"
The man known as Pillsaint was the type of person who simply couldn't hide or disguise his emotions.
"I'm a venerable master of the Dao of Alchemy, but my alchemical prowess is completely useless here. Instead, I have to battle against all these other World-level cultivators." The chubby youth muttered to himself as he walked towards a room. He pushed the door open, then entered. The walls of this room were covered with many divine runes. Upon entering the room, you would also be entering this powerful formation.
Rumble…
Space began to twist and distort, with World God Pillsaint disappearing into thin air.
This island was a beautiful one that was covered with a layer of frost and snow. The entire island was completely silent.
Whoosh.
A pudgy youth suddenly appeared out of nowhere. He glanced at his surroundings, noticing that the entire island was covered with a layer of silvery snow. He was able to see everything quite clearly, and he was quite satisfied. "This battleground is a good one. The scenery is nice, at least. Way better than the last one."
"It seems my luck really is turning." World God Pillsaint lay down on the snow, half-closing his eyes as he relaxed. "I don't have many legacies left, but those damnable cultivators on the fourth level keep on coming to rob me of what I have. I hope my luck takes a turn for the better for once. Hopefully this guy will have at least an Eternal weapon. If I can get an Eternal weapon, I'll become much more powerful and be capable of giving those fellows on the fourth level a good fight. I might even be able to acquire a complete legacy."
Previously, he had been trying to collect the ninety-sixth legacy, a legacy which was scattered across a hundred legacy treasures. He had gained a total of ninety-one pieces, but a damnable cultivator on the fourth level had issued him a challenge. Pillsaint had hurriedly issued a challenge of his own to a cultivator on the second stratum. If that cultivator had accepted, then there would've been no need for Pillsaint to battle the cultivator from the fourth stratum.
Alas, the cultivator from the second stratum had declined to do battle.
Pillsaint had no other options. He had to accept the challenge from the fourth stratum.
The results of that battle were… he lost. His legacy treasures were stripped from him! He had worked so hard for so long, but it all instantly went up in smoke. He had damn near gone mad.
Whoosh.
Space twisted once more.
Ji Ning appeared atop this icy island. As he glanced at the scenery, Ning couldn't help but smile very slightly. He also noticed the pudgy youth who was sleeping on the snowy ground not too far away from him.
Swoosh. The chubby youth rose to his feet and stared at Ning, a scorching look in his eyes. "Fellow Daoist, you have an extraordinary demeanor. I imagine you must be carrying valuable treasures."
"Yes." Ning nodded.
The chubby youth's eyes instantly lit up as he grew even more excited. "Eternal treasures?"
"Yes." Ning laughed and nodded. Hundreds of thousands of World-level cultivators were here, and most likely a good number of them held Eternal weapons. Ning couldn't bother to hide the fact that he had one of his own. A weak person who had an Eternal weapon might become a target, but Ning was strong enough that he had nothing to fear.
"Ehehe. Treasures belong to the strong, you know. It would be wasted in your hands." The pudgy youth's aura suddenly blasted forth as he manifested a total of six arms. He now wielded six black hammers in his hands. "Hurry up and hand it over, and I'll spare your life if you do."
For some reason, Ning couldn't help but have a good feeling about this pudgy youth. He almost felt as though he was looking at an infant. This pudgy youth wore his heart on his sleeve, his emotions on display for anyone to see. He didn't seem to have any evil intentions at all and appeared to be a valiant man.
However, Ning suddenly felt a twinge of fear.
How could he possibly treat any World-level cultivator as he would a child? For Ning to feel kindly disposed to him without even realizing it… it was possible that this was because this cultivator truly was a good man, but it was also possible that he had trained in some sort of mesmerizing technique.
"Then let's see what you have." Ning held a Violetjewel in each of his two hands. Here on the Astral Islands, even a battle against someone weaker had to be taken seriously.
Although two swords wasn't the full extent of Ning's power, it was enough for Ning to generate a truly airtight defense.
"Eat a hammer!" The pudgy youth charged forwards, the great warhammer in his hands transforming into a streak of light that caused space to collapse in on itself. The power of this blow was so great that even Ning couldn't help but feel speechless.
A supreme World God? It seemed he was actually more than just that!
BOOM! Ning released a seemingly simple sword-strike that struck directly against the great warhammer that was slamming down towards him. Warhammers were weapons well-suited for heavy smashing blows, and to use sword-arts in a head-on clash against a warhammer was indeed a foolish decision. However, Ning held tremendous confidence in his own strength. It was highly unlikely that he would find anyone in the World level who could overcome him in raw physical power… and if Ning DID encounter some a powerful freak that was even stronger than him, Ning would run away as fast as he could.
As expected, this casual strike from Ning was enough to send his opponent staggering backwards.
"How can this be?!" A dazed look appeared on the pudgy youth's face as he stared at Ning. "I just wanted to fight a newbie. Why the hell did I run into such a strong one?"
"No way. I don't believe this." The pudgy youth once more charged forwards, his six warhammers shattering the heavens as they came smashing down towards Ning once more.
Ning couldn't help but sigh upon seeing this.
His opponent was most likely a supreme World God, and his awe-inspiring hammer-arts were mighty and difficult to defend against. However, there was a flaw to this type of an attack, which used overwhelming raw power and space itself to crush down upon one's foes. The flaw was… if your foe could withstand your attacks, you would be finished.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Ning showed no mercy at all, striking out three times in quick succession. The first strike knocked the youth backwards, the second caused him to stumble as he frantically defended. When Pillsaint fell down to the ground, a huge crater appeared in the ground beneath him.
When Ning's third sword slammed into the opponent, the pudgy youth vomited out a mouthful of blood.
"Give up?" Ning pointed at his foe with his sword.
"You are way too strong. Even on the fourth floor, only those freaks who once made it to the fifth floor would be a match for you." The pudgy youth lay there within his crater, somewhat dazed. "Why is my luck so shitty? More than thirty thousand newbies, and I have to pick a freak who is strong enough to make it to the fifth stratum."
Ning was intrigued upon hearing this. He didn't know how strong the various experts on the Astral Islands were, but his opponent had clearly been here for quite some time and knew many things.
"There's only a few freaks like him, but I just had to run into one." The pudgy youth shook his head, then looked at Ning. He said hurriedly, "Can you please not take away my warhammers? They are just Dao weapons."
"Dao weapons?" Ning was secretly surprised. The youth had been able to unleash the power of a supreme World God while using mere Dao weapons? This fellow was incredibly strong, much more powerful than God Emperor Blacklotus had been! If he was using an Eternal weapon… didn't that mean he would have the power of a transcendent World God?
"I'm telling the truth. See for yourself!" The pudgy youth said hurriedly, "You can send out your divine sense and scan any of the treasures I'm carrying inside of me. Ugh, I've been robbed of all of my chaos nectar. All I have left are these six hammers…"
Although he had encountered a few people who were slightly stronger than him, they generally wouldn't go too far. If they did, World God Pillsaint would've gone all-out. To kill a powerful World God was a very difficult feat; normally, the only option for doing so was to exhaust his store of divine power.
Divine power needed a fairly long period of time in order to recover. However, on the Astral Islands it was possible that one would receive a challenge every single day. If you lost your power, you might well fall victim to the schemes of another.
Thus, unless there was an overwhelming disparity in power, these cultivators generally wouldn't force their foes to go all-out. That was of no benefit to them.
However, Ning was capable of easily slaying his opponent. The difference in power between the two truly was quite great. His foe was merely a supreme World God, whereas Ning was comparable to a Daolord of the First Step.
"All I have are these six hammers." The pudgy youth stared at Ning. He really was worried that Ning would take those hammers away from him.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 30 – Three Months
If Ji Ning wished to take his warhammers by force, he would be dramatically weakened. Although he could still go abuse other cultivators on the first stratum and steal a few Dao weapons from them, he had brought those six warhammers with him from the outside world. They were very suitable weapons for him, and it would be quite hard for him to find similarly suitable weapons on those weaker cultivators.
"Are you serious…" Ning swept the man with his godsense. The man didn't resist at all, allowing Ning to scan him with ease.
"You don't even have a single bottle of chaos nectar or a single chaos jewel." Ning shook his head.
"I used to! They took everything from me." The pudgy youth shook his head. "Nothing I could do. They were stronger than me. I'm just happy I was able to keep my six warhammers. I used to have an Eternal treasure, but that was taken from me as well."
As he spoke, he looked at Ning in a rather anxious, beseeching manner. "Can you leave my six warhammers alone? Please?"
"Don't worry. I have no interest in those six warhammers whatsoever," Ning chuckled. "I just want to ask you a few questions. Also, you have to give me that sword-arts legacy you are holding."
"Take it." The pudgy youth immediately tossed a sword-shaped talisman over towards Ning. This was one of the legacy treasures that formed the seventy-third ranked legacy, the sword-arts legacy. Although it was merely ranked seventy-three, it was still divided up into 108 different legacy treasures. You had to acquire the full set in order to gain access to it.
Seeing that Ning didn't intend to kill him, the pudgy youth hurriedly said, "Ask me whatever you wish. I, Pillsaint, will tell you everything you want to know."
"Your name is Pillsaint?" Ning asked.
"Yes, Pillsaint. This is the Daoist title which my master gave me. My master is skilled in alchemy, as am I. Who would've thought that I would be this unlucky? A Daolord had asked me to go help him refine some pills, but halfway on the trip back I was abducted to this place by a different Samsara Daolord, as were the ten World-level cultivators who the first Daolord had sent to invite me." Pillsaint had a resigned look on his face as he spoke.
Ning was shocked upon hearing this. Skilled in Alchemy?
This fellow was capable of unleashing the power of a supreme World God when using mere Dao weapons… and he was actually a master of alchemy? A Daolord had asked him to go refine pills for him? That meant his skill in alchemy had to be incredibly high. Ning knew that the skilled alchemists and pill-refiners of the Endless Territories were incredibly respected.
"Ugh, but so what if I'm good at alchemy? The Brightshore Kingdom doesn't give a damn about me. All I can do is stay here and duel other World-level cultivators." World God Pillsaint said resignedly, "I'm skilled in controlling the empty void of space and am physically strong, but that's just because those are necessary components of pillforging. Right now, all I can do is use my warhammers to battle against other World-level cultivators."
Ning could tell that this World God Pillsaint had to be extremely skilled in the arts of alchemy and had an even more skilled alchemy master. In the outside world, not even ordinary Samsara Daolords would go offend someone of his status.
If Ning could, he would try to find a chance to help this man out. If World God Pillsaint was able to leave this place in the future, Ning could ask him or even his master to help him refine any special pills that he needed.
"Mm. In the future, I'll need to acquire a few extra legacies. If I find any that I don't need, I can just lose a set to him on purpose," Ning mused.
The only legacies Ning himself were interested at present were the sword-arts legacy and the footwork legacy. As for the top-ranked heartforce legacy, Ning was interested in that as well.
Still, the rules were that those who acquired a complete legacy could leave, but those who acquired two were required to leave.
Thus, if Ning wanted to acquire several different legacies, he would have to lose a few battles on purpose and let his opponents acquire those legacies! Ning was definitely planning on helping out Su Youji, but if he had the chance he would also help this World God Pillsaint as well.
"I wonder which astral island Youji is now on." There was nothing Ning could do. Only after battling someone could he find out exactly which island a specific cultivator was on. He wanted to help her out, but he currently could not. Only in the future would he be able to try to come up with a way of locating her.
"I ask you this," Ning said, "Roughly how strong are the cultivators on each island?"
"That's hard to say, because even the first stratum might hold a few freakishly strong individuals." World God Pillsaint glanced at Ning, then said hurriedly, "I can just give you a rough estimate of how strong everyone is."
Ning nodded.
"The astral islands on the first stratum generally hold master-class World-level cultivators as well as a few even weaker cultivators.
"The second stratum holds more formidable cultivators. Some have unique treasures or techniques, such as special spells or powerful golems. Others have reached at least the supreme World-level of power.
"The third stratum is generally where most supreme World-level cultivators reside, or those who possess extremely special techniques. I'm a supreme World God myself, and I'm very physically strong. I'm capable of forcing my opponents to face my attacks head-on, which is my position within the third stratum is quite secure.
"The fourth stratum is generally filled with transcendent World-level cultivators, as well as some of the freakishly strong figures who belonged to the fifth stratum but who were temporarily beaten down by other cultivators from that stratum.
"The fifth stratum… everyone capable of standing securely within that stratum is an utter monster. Most of them probably have the power of Daolords of the First Step, and many have very unique skills and abilities. Who knows what special skills or trump cards they have up their sleeves? All I know is that I've never run into them before. There are only twelve individuals total on the fifth stratum. Eight are special lifeforms while four are cultivators."
Ning was secretly shocked upon hearing this.
The twelve on the fifth stratum all had the power of Daolords of the First Step? How terrifying. Still, most were special lifeforms. There were certain powerful races that were born with tremendous advantages over normal cultivators!
"There's only a single cultivator on the sixth stratum. I hear that his name is Bertulu, and that he's an absolutely freakishly strong figure." The pudgy youth shook his head. "What a freak! He's a special lifeform as well. Not even those other freaks on the fifth stratum can beat him. He truly is unfathomably strong."
"Bertulu?" Ning silently memorized this name.
"Fortunately, there is a rule in the Astral Islands that anyone who makes it to the fifth level will be protected, even if they are temporarily knocked down to a lower level. That's why the only reason why Bertulu hasn't completely demolished all of the other freaks." World God Pillsaint shook his head and sighed.
Ning understood the purpose of this rule. The Astral Islands existed in order to help the Brightshore Kingdom select some of the most powerful World-level cultivators to join its ranks. The three hundred thousand-plus cultivators within the Astral Islands right now included many powerful cultivators which the Brightshore Kingdom had abducted from the outside world, but it also held many cultivators which had emerged from the Brightshore Kingdom's own territory. Ordinary World-level cultivators simply couldn't compare to them.
Given how many powerful World-level cultivators were amongst the three hundred thousand, for a few absolute monsters to emerge was normal.
Generally speaking, anyone who could make it to the fifth stratum was a freak in some way. Any such person would be protected by the Astral Islands. Even if other cultivators defeated them, they would at most be permitted to take away their opponents' legacy treasures. It was forbidden to kill them! It was also forbidden to seize any of their other, personal treasures!
But of course, this was just a minor form of protection. Although the Brightshore Kingdom was intrigued by these monsters, it wouldn't necessarily go crazy over them. This was because although they were monsters now, they wouldn't necessarily be monstrously powerful Daolords in the future.
In the Allgod Estate, the formation-spirit of the Ten Thousand Mountains had encountered quite a few freakishly talented figures over countless eons, but the only truly formidable figure to emerge was Daolord Badlands.
But of course, Bertulu was so incredibly, freakishly talented that even the most powerful kingdom in all the Endless Territories, the Brightshore Kingdom, rarely encountered his equal. He had already found his path and was capable of becoming a Samsara Daolord whenever he wished. The way they treated him was naturally different.
"It seems that I should be strong enough to make it to the fifth stratum," Ning mused. "Only by making it to the fifth stratum will I be protected."
Although Ning was confident in his abilities, he wasn't confident in his abilities to defeat Bertulu of the sixth stratum. Bertulu had to have acquired the number one legacy, the heartforce legacy, a long time ago. Cultivators skilled in heartforce were quite terrifying to fight, and Ning wasn't confident in his ability to withstand him.
"I need to seize every moment. The more time passes, the more variables might appear."
After this first battle, Ning began to accept one challenge after another. He kept a low-profile as he dueled other cultivators on the first stratum. Some challenged him, others he challenged.
There were also times when no one challenged him and the person he challenged refused. In that case, he had no choice but to wait and rest for a day.
And so, just like that…
Ning ended up spending twelve days before advancing to the second stratum.
After spending another twenty-six days, he advanced to the third stratum.
After spending another fifty-one days, he advanced to the fourth stratum.
Ning didn't encounter any of the freaks who had previously made it to the fifth stratum. Since everyone who had been on the fifth stratum was under protection, it was very rare for other World-level cultivators to challenge them. Thus, those freaks generally spent most of their time meditating on the powerful legacies they had acquired. It was entirely possible for them to spend a century in meditation. Ning's sudden rise to power did attract the attention of two 'protected' World-level cultivators, but those two didn't move to challenge him. Instead, they watched quietly.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 31 – Full Mastery
Ji Ning took things slowly and steadily. He began to challenge the other cultivators on the fourth level. Out of an abundance of caution, Ning didn't challenge anyone who had made it to the fifth stratum in the past. Ning's plan was to wait until he himself made it to the fifth stratum before challenging them.
Here in the Brightshore Kingdom, a single mistake could result in a cascade of errors. There were many freakishly strong cultivators in the Endless Territories who had ended up perishing midway through their journeys. If he was too arrogant, he would probably join them.
Every single opponent on the fourth stratum was incredibly strong, at least as strong as a transcendent World God. They all had their own special skills, and Ning would spend time after each battle meditating on his experiences.
Within one of the astral islands levitating within the fourth stratum.
There was a strange building here that looked round from the outside but was box-shaped on the inside. This was the finest temporal acceleration treasure which Ning had acquired from Arroyo, a treasure which was far better than the Heavengazer Tower. It could easily maintain a rate of time that was fifty times faster than normal, and if you were willing to use up your Immortal energy it could go up to two hundred times the normal rate! But of course, this would use up an absolutely astonishing amount of energy.
Ning was currently maintaining a rate equivalent to a hundred times the normal rate of time. He was reflecting on his previous battle and the new insights it had brought him, using them to perfect his sword-arts. That last battle had been his sixth battle on the fourth stratum, and he had won it as he had all his previous battles!
Rumble…
While meditating on his sword-arts, Ning was in constant resonance with the infinitely distant prime essence of the sword.
The prime essence of the sword was one of the true essences and sources of the endless primordial chaos. It was where the Dao of the Sword itself originated from! It constantly emanated mysterious ripples pertaining to the Dao of the Sword, allowing cultivators to understand more of itself.
"After cultivating for more than a hundred thousand years, I finally understand." Ning suddenly smiled.
Rumble…
The towering Dao-tree within his Jindan chaos region had already reached a height of of more than 105,000 meters tall. In this instant it once more grew upwards, reaching a height of precisely 108,000 meters tall!
In this moment, power began to flow throughout his entire Jindan chaos region, causing it to become even more stable than before.
Boom! Ning's divine body suddenly transformed into a large number of godgems. Chaos energy flowed through him and transformed into more and more godgems, causing a total of 36,000 godgems to emerge and hover in midair. Moments later, they reconverged to form a single figure, Ji Ning's figure.
"I've seen through and comprehended all the foundational insights regarding the Dao of the Sword. Finally, I have reached the level of full mastery." Ning was in a superb mood today.
Although it seemed as though Ning had only been cultivating for a few thousand years, if you factored in all the temporal acceleration he had spent more than a hundred thousand years meditating on the Dao of the Sword! When he had emerged from the Allgod Estate, his Dao-tree had already been more than sixty thousand meters tall. He had then engaged in many battles as well as repeatedly dueled the three experts of the sword in the Mirrorsnow Paintings, resulting in Ning's Dao-tree quickly growing to become more than ninety thousand meters high.
He had spent hundreds of years battling in the Sea of Darkness as well. Although he had spent less than half a year in this place, the temporal acceleration meant that dozens of years had gone past for Ning. In addition, Ning had been battling gainst all sorts of powerful World-level cultivators. Thanks to all of these factors, he had finally understood some of the fundamental principles of the prime essence of the sword.
In that instant, he finally understood why it was that this level as known as the level of 'full mastery' and why World Gods at this level were referred to as 'master-class' World Gods.
"Full mastery of the World level… so this is nothing more than the outermost level of understanding the prime essence of the sword." Ning couldn't help but sigh.
The prime essence of the sword…
From it originated the entire Dao of the Sword within the endless primordial chaos. It was naturally unfathomable and profound, and many of its most profound mysteries were actually hidden within the prime essence itself. There was no way to even sense those mysteries, much less meditate on them.
Only the outermost mysteries of the Dao of the Sword which emanated from it like a halo could be meditated on. In recent years, Ning had merely been meditating on those outermost mysteries.
Every single World-level cultivator of the Dao of the Sword would strive hard to comprehend these mysteries. And now… Ning had gained a complete understanding of this outermost layer of the prime essence of the sword!
From this day forth, his Dao-tree would be 108,00 meters tall and his godgems would be 36,000 in number!
From this day forth…
The prime essence of the sword within the endless primordial chaos would no longer be of any use to Ning, because there was no way he could meditate on any of the mysteries that were contained deeper inside of it. Forget about Ji Ning; not even Samsara Daolords or Eternal Emperors were capable of entering the prime essence heart of the endless primordial chaos. This place was the very core of the entire primordial chaos, a place which cultivators could not possibly enter.
In truth, it wasn't just the Dao of the Sword that existed in that place. All Daos originated from that place!
The prime essence of metal, wood, water, fire, earth, lightning, light, slaughter, the saber, the sword… all prime essences radiated some of its outermost mysteries, allowing cultivators to train in them, but held their deeper mysteries inside of themselves. There was no way those mysteries could be cultivated in at all.
Thus, no matter what path you trained it, you would at most be able to reach the level of full mastery in a fairly easy manner.
Once you gained full mastery…
Your insights would come to an end. You had gained full mastery of what there was to master.
If you wanted to make any further advancements, you would have to rely solely on yourself! In the past, you would be able to continue to attune to the prime essence of a Dao. Now, however, you would have no one to rely on but yourself. You would have to find a unique path belonging to yourself, creating your own Dao out of nowhere and use it to step into the Samsara Daolord level.
Because this Dao would be a completely self-created Dao, this was an incredibly dangerous prospect. The Dao you created might be a heterodox Dao that was wrong. That Dao might allow you to step onto the Samsara Daolord level, but it was entirely possible that soon after embarking on this path your Dao would suddenly crumble, causing you to perish.
This was the reason why it was said that with each step, Samsara Daolords tread the line between life and death! Every single step they took, they would create an ever-deeper level of the Dao for themselves. If the Dao you created was an erroneous Dao, then once you attempted to use it to improve yourself your divine power and truesoul would become to collapse. You would perish.
With each step, they tread the line between life and death. Some would finally reach the Verge of the Daomerge, becoming incredibly powerful figures even amongst their Samsara Daolord fellows. Daolord Solesky was one good example. If his Daomerge succeeded, it meant that his Dao was a perfect one which could gain true eternity. Their path would allow them to live forever within the primordial chaos, with the ravages of time no longer having any effect upon them!
But of course, some of those Daolords on the Verge had incorrect Daos. That did not, however, mean that they were weak. There were some Verge-level Daolords who were capable of battling Eternal Emperors, even though they themselves would never reach that level.
"I previously was able to advance at a rapid pace. Now that I have reached the level of full mastery, I'll have to find my own path for myself." Ning understood exactly how difficult it would be for him to find a path that would let him enter the Samsara Daolord level.
An astral island on the fifth stratum.
"My dear Wildgloom, in the Twelve Palaces our Palace of Thunder is ranked as one of the top palaces. You are quite talented in the Dao of Thunder. If you join our Thunder Palace, your future prospects will definitely be limitless." An old man dressed in azure armor chortled as he spoke.
Seated facing him was a tall, muscular metallic creature whose entire body was formed by strange metals and wreathed in lightning.
World God Wildgloom was a special lifeform who was born with great power over lightning. He had now reached an incredible level in the Dao of Thunder. Once he became a Samsara Daolord, he would reach even more astonishing heights.
"I can train in thunder in any of the Twelve Palaces of Brightshore." Wildgloom's voice was slightly jarring to the ear. "Senior Flameflow, please give me some more time to think this matter through."
"No rush, no rush." The azure-armored elder nodded and smiled.
Anyone capable of residing permanently on the fifth stratum was more than strong enough to easily acquire a complete legacy. They could've left the astral islands long ago, but most of them were in no rush. There were legacies here, as well as powerful opponents for them to battle against. Most importantly, they still had to decide which palace they were going to join.
The Twelve Palaces of Brightshore were all incredibly powerful, but the best palace would always be the one which suited them the most. They had to decide what their future path would be before deciding on which palace they would join.
"You have my message-talisman. Once you decide, just break it and I'll come find you." The silver-armored elder smiled as he rose to his feet. "I won't disturb you any further."
World God Wildgloom hurriedly rose to his feet to send his guest off. Although this person had come to invite him, he was still a Samsara Daolord. He was not, however, one of those black-armored Daolords. Those black-armored Daolords were the weakest Daolords.
Whoosh.
The azure-armored Daolord, Daolord Flameflow, flew out of this astral island. He pulled out an enormous book and began to casually flip through it. The members of the Twelve Palaces were permitted to go through the information which the kingdom possessed regarding all of the World-level cultivators here.
"Eh? This fellow has been here less than half a year, but he's made it to the fourth stratum already? He's also defeated six consecutive foes on the fourth stratum? He's undefeated thus far?" As Daolord Flameflow flipped through the pages of the book, he couldn't help be startled by something he read.
If someone defeated ten foes in a row on the fourth stratum, that person would be promoted to the fifth stratum. This man had defeated six foes in a row without being defeated a single time. Given this, it was very likely that he would make it to the fifth stratum in the future.
"Skilled in both the sword as well as lightning? His skill in lightning alone allows him to suppress his foes, and he is quite talented in the Dao of Thunder? This guy looks like he would be a great fit for my Thunder Palace. Mm, I should go take a look." The azure-armored elder quickly decided to go visit this astral island on the fourth stratum. He quickly began to stride through the air as he walked towards that island.
This was, of course, the astral island which Ning was residing on.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 32 – The Twelve Palaces of Brightshore
Ji Ning was meditating on sword-arts by himself within his astral island, using the top-grade temporal acceleration Dao treasure, the Luminous Room.
Ning was seated in the lotus position. Before him was a table that had a flagon of wine, a scroll of parchment, a brush, and a brush holder. Every so often, he'd pick up the brush and spend a bit of time painting on the scroll.
"The fifth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, the Silent World. I still need to spend a bit more time on it." Ning was close to mastering the fifth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, which was the highest level stance which World God Northrest himself had been able to master!
They were both World-level cultivators and had both reached the level of full mastery in the Dao of the Sword, but there were still differences in their sword-arts!
Northrest had only been a supreme World God due to his Eternal weapon, but some of the truly peerless geniuses which the Brightshore Kingdom had abducted and brought to this place were capable of that level of power even when they used mere Dao weapons. Some were even more terrifyingly strong!
This was what a difference in sword-arts could make.
In terms of profundity of sword-arts, there were quite a few people on the Astral Islands who were superior to Ning! Ning himself understood this quite well. In short, he simply hadn't been training for long enough, and he had broken through to the World level just recently. If these people knew that he had reached the level of full mastery a mere thousand years after reaching the World level, they would probably be completely stupefied.
"Others won't care about how long you have been cultivating. They will only care about how strong you are. My advantage lies in the strength and speed which the azureflower mist energy has imbued me with. It gives me the speed and strength of a Daolord of the First Step! But my weakness is my sword-arts…"
"I need to hurry up and collect a set of the sword-arts legacy. That will be of use to my sword-arts as well," Ning mused.
Anything referred to as a 'legacy' would include extremely detailed, step-by-step instructions for cultivators to use. The [Nameless] sword-art which Ning had acquired was just a fragmentary record; it couldn't really be referred to as a true legacy.
On the other hand, the many stone sword-steles which World God Northrest had painstakingly erected in order to help his successor better understand the first stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, the Heartsword stance, would qualify as a legacy. It contained detailed instructions and provided true guidance to the learner.
It was the legacy which World God Northrest had prepared for his successor.
As for the ninety-nine legacies on the Astral Islands, two of them were sword-arts. However, these sword-arts had been left behind by Samsara Daolords. It must be understood that ever since Ning had left the Three Realms, he hadn't encountered any formidable Daolord-level experts of the sword who could provide him with tutelage. He had been working hard all by himself.
"Eh?" Ning was suddenly disturbed from his meditations. "Someone came?"
He had bound this astral island long ago and thus was easily able to sense the presence of an outsider.
"Even I am restricted from leaving my astral island. For someone to come to my island means that this is probably a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom." Ning placed his brush on the brush stand, then immediately left the Luminous Room.
After putting his treasure away, Ning emerged from his private room and then walked into his courtyard where he saw a figure standing outside.
It was an old man dressed in azure armor who had his hands clasped behind his back. As Ning pushed open the doors to his courtyard, the old man turned around and smiled at Ning. "I am Flameflow. I am from the Thunder Palace of the Twelve Palaces."
Ning was startled. This old man was a Samsara Daolord? He immediately said, "Darknorth greets you, senior Flameflow."
"Darknorth?" The azure-armored man nodded slightly, then let out a praising sigh. "My dear Darknorth, you are an impressive figure. Just three months after coming to the Astral Islands, you have already ascended to the fourth stratum, then won six consecutive battles here."
"I'm not quite where I need to be yet. I need ten consecutive victories before I can make it to the fifth stratum," Ning said.
"Generally speaking, the newcomers to the Astral Islands will have to undergo many battles and acquire a few legacies, allowing them to improve and grow before they are able to ascend to the fifth stratum." The azure-armored old man said, "As soon as you came here, you won six battles in a row here on the fourth stratum. I trust that it won't be too hard for you to ascend to the fifth stratum."
Ning understood this as well. There was one particularly valuable part of being here on the Astral Islands: there were many dazzlingly talented cultivators here. In the rest of the Endless Territories, it would be quite hard for Ning to encounter suitable foes. For a transcendent World God to encounter another transcendent World God was an incredibly rare experience.
But here on the Astral Islands, a large number of formidable World-level cultivators had been brought together. It was entirely possible and quite easy for a person to seek out opponents who were roughly on par with him in strength, or perhaps someone slightly stronger or weaker. Since losing a duel might very well result in death, everyone was motivated to fight to their fullest potential. As a result, all the surviving cultivators were generally able to grow stronger and stronger.
Only by making it to the fifth stratum would you receive protection… but how many would ever be able to ascend to that stratum?
"Please sit, senior." Ning gestured towards the wooden table and seats nearby. Ning had placed them here, as he often enjoyed sitting down and enjoying some wine as he stared at the many astral islands hovering outside.
Daolord Flameflow sat down.
"Please." Ning sat down on the other side and helped pour some wine.
"I know you are skilled in lightning," Daolord Flameflow said.
"You know, senior?" Ning was surprised. Although he had fought quite a few times in the Astral Islands, it was only during his two most recent battles that he had used thunder and lightning. His previous opponents had been so weak that he hadn't felt the need.
"I have full records of all the battles you engaged in here in the Astral Islands." Daolord Flameflow chuckled. "Only by watching your battles and learning where your specialties lie shall the Twelve Palaces be in a good position to judge and choose from amongst you."
"The Twelve Palaces?" Ning was puzzled.
Daolord Flameflow smiled. "You were abducted to this place by the almighty Hegemon, but you probably don't know much right now. For weaker cultivators, being brought here was a calamity, but for someone like you it is a blessing. The almighty Hegemon… he is an incomparably powerful figure that is one of the few that truly stands at the very apex of the Endless Territories. He has been alive for an extremely long period of time and was the founder of our Brightshore Kingdom."
Daolord Flameflow asked, "Have you heard of the Dao Alliance?"
"I have." Ning nodded.
"The Dao Alliance spans an incredibly vast area and virtually all cultivators belong to the Dao Alliance. Compared to the Dao Alliance, our Brightshore Kingdom is more aloof and more secretive." Daolord Flameflow said, "The Brightshore Kingdom almost never gets involved in any wars, and so we are on fairly good terms with the Dao Alliance."
On good terms with the Dao Alliance? Ning let out a sigh of relief. Vastheaven Palace was part of the Dao Alliance; if the Brightshore Kingdom was on bad terms with the Dao Alliance, Ning would've been in trouble. But if they were on good terms… why would this almighty Hegemon abduct so many of the World-level cultivators belonging to the Dao Alliance?
"The Brightshore Kingdom is primarily divided up into twelve palaces," Daolord Flameflow said. "There is also an imperial clan of individuals who are of the same race as the almighty Hegemon. Although they are few in number, they are extremely powerful."
"They are of the same race as the almighty Hegemon?" Ning suddenly thought back to that enormous, terrifying behemoth that had abducted him to this place.
Of the same race as that behemoth?
"Yes. The members of the imperial clan are extremely few in number, but every single one of them possesses incredible strength and power. But of course, the almighty Hegemon is the mightiest of them all," Daolord Flameflow said. "The imperial clan rarely shows itself, while the Twelve Palaces of Brightshore comprises virtually all of the cultivators, Aeonians, special lifeforms, and other powerful experts of the Brightshore Kingdom."
Daolord Flameflow continued, "The Twelve Palaces are very powerful. They are divided into the Palace of the Saber, the Palace of the Sword, the Palace of Radiance, the Palace of Mortality, the Palace of Thunder, the Palace of Flames, the Palace of the Heart, the Palace of Kindwater, the Palace of Woodform, the Palace of Skymetal, the Palace of Deepearth, and the Palace of Spacetime. My palace, the Thunder Palace, holds almost all of the Brightshore Kingdom's experts in the Dao of Lightning. We have the accumulated legacies of countless generations of lightning-attribute experts and many Daolords! If you were to join us, you will definitely be able to make great strides on this path."
Only now did Ning truly understand. At the top of the Brightshore Kingdom stood the Twelve Palaces. As for the almighty Hegemon and the imperial clan… the almighty Hegemon was of course quite powerful, but his imperial clansmen were simply too few in number.
As for the Twelve Palaces, a steady flow of new people would constantly join them. Just look at the cultivators and special lifeforms currently within the Astral Islands. The most skillful members would all be brought into the Twelve Palaces in the future.
"Once you acquire a full legacy, you'll be qualified to leave this place. If you wish to join the Thunder Palace, you can just shatter this message-talisman of mine." As Daolord Flameflow spoke, he produced a deep azure talisman that was brimming with flickers of electricity. He handed the talisman straight to Ning. "Once you shatter this, I'll sense it and immediately come receive you."
Ning blinked. The Thunder Palace? It was destined that he would walk the path of the Dao of the Sword! His mastery over lightning was far weaker than his mastery of the sword. The entire reason why he had some skill in this area was all thanks to one of the nine secret-arts of Daolord Allgod, the [Novessence Thunder].
Daolord Flameflow continued, "I know that you are also skilled in sword-arts, and I imagine that in the future you shall have to choose between the Sword Palace and the Thunder Palace. None of the Twelve Palaces will give you any pressure; you can choose whichever palace you so desire."
"Oh, right." Ning's eyes suddenly lit up. "Senior, you said just now that you know the results of every battle?"
"Yes. That way, the Twelve Palaces can more easily choose our new members," Daolord Flameflow said.
"Then have you received word of a female Chaos Immortal who is skilled in the element of fire? She has fifty-one bugbeasts that are comparable to master-class World Gods as well as a full set of eighteen powerful golems that are also comparable to master-class World Gods." Ning continued hurriedly, "This is what she looks like. She came here by my side." As Ning spoke, he waved his finger in the air and caused an image of Su Youji to appear out of nowhere.
"I don't know what she looks like, but as for a female Chaos Immortal skilled in fire who has bugbeasts and eighteen golems…" Daolord Flameflow laughed. "There is indeed someone amongst the new arrivals who fits these criteria."
Ning let out a sigh of relief. He found her. Finally, he had found Su Youji!
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 33 – The Tenth Battle
"Female Chaos Immortals are rare to begin with, and ones who specialize in using golems and bugbeasts are even rarer. When you factor in her being skilled the Dao of Fire… yes, there's only one who fits it all." Daolord Flameflow looked at Ji Ning. "Is she your Dao-companion?"
"She is my friend," Ji Ning replied.
"It seems that being your friend is a good thing." Daolord Flameflow said, "Are you planning to acquire a full legacy, then lose it to her on purpose?"
"Yes." Ning nodded. Once she acquired a full legacy, she would be able to leave this place.
Daolord Flameflow said, "Then there is something I must tell you in advance."
"Yes?" Ning looked at the Daolord. Something he needed to know in advance? Was there something wrong with this plan of his? But based on what he had seen thus far, losing on purpose was entirely permitted.
"Being in the Astral Islands is both a curse and a blessing. If your friend is extraordinarily talented, it might be a better idea for you to let her stay here for a while longer. But of course, if she's weak it would be best for her to leave early on," Daolord Flameflow said. "My reminder to you is this… even if she manages to survive the Astral Islands, it'll still be quite hard for her to join the Twelve Palaces."
"Very hard?" Ning was intrigued.
"Yes." Daolord Flameflow nodded. "The Twelve Palaces represent the twelve most powerful organizations in the entire Brightshore Kingdom. They recruit Daolords as well as truly talented World-level cultivators who are worthy of further training. It is quite difficult for the many denizens of the Brightshore Kingdom to actually join the Twelve Palaces."
Daolord Flameflow continued, "There are some, for example, who willingly became slaves of the kingdom. Although they are still considered our citizens, they stand at the lowest rungs of society. As for those who went to mine for a thousand chaos cycles, they will become citizens upon their return, yes, but do you really think they are qualified to join the Twelve Palaces?" Daolord Flameflow laughed. "Becoming a citizen of the Brightshore Kingdom and joining the Twelve Palaces are two separate matters."
Ning now understood.
"Take yourself, for example. You have the power to make it into the fifth stratum, which is why I came to give you an invitation." Daolord Flameflow continued, "Some weaker World-level cultivators might never receive an invitation, even if they do manage to put together a complete legacy. There is a high barrier to entry for the Twelve Palaces, and even the citizens of the Brightshore Kingdom have to undergo many different trials before they are granted entry. But of course, people like you who have received invitations don't need to go through any further trials."
Ning nodded.
He understood. However, he still wanted to help Su Youji as quickly as possible. Ning knew exactly what her strengths and limitations were. She had just reached the World level a short while ago, and her insights into the Dao weren't even as profound as Ning's, nor was she a battle-hardy World God. She would be able to buy herself some time with her bugbeasts and golems, but as time passed… eventually, she would encounter a truly talented expert and might well lose her life.
"I'd like to ask you, senior, to tell me which astral island she is on," Ning said.
The golden book included detailed records of every astral island, including basic information about each cultivator and the treasures they held. There was naturally a notation of each location as well.
Generally speaking, the cultivators in the Astral Islands would only learn of each other's locations through actual combat. But it was only natural for a Samsara Daolord of the Thunder Palace of the Twelve Palaces to know much more.
"The astral island she is on has the address of 399-236," Daolord Flameflow said.
"So this one over there." Ning immediately was able to locate the island in question. This astral island was still on the first stratum.
"My young friend Darknorth, I won't disturb you any further. If you wish to join the Palace of Thunder, simply shatter the talisman and I'll come welcome you." Daolord Flameflow rose to his feet.
"Thank you for everything, senior." Ning felt quite grateful towards the man. If it wasn't for his help, even he didn't know how long it would be before he found Su Youji's astral island.
"A minor matter," Daolord Flameflow said with a laugh. He then turned and left, disappearing into the skies.
Ning watched silently and pensively as the Daolord left.
"I need to make it to the fifth stratum as soon as possible. I'll then acquire one of the simpler sword-arts legacies and lose it to Youji right away," Ning mused to himself. Two sword-arts legacies and one footwork legacy. Ning wanted the footwork legacy the most. Alas, it was highly ranked and hard to acquire. In fact, most of the legacy treasures were with the cultivators on the fifth stratum.
In the coming days, Ning began to issue challenges anew to the other cultivators on his stratum.
The fourth stratum. The seventh battle.
Ning encountered an expert who was skilled in the Dao of Spacetime. This was Ning's toughest, most grueling battle, because his opponent's fleeing skills were simply incredible, allowing him to retreat and advance as he pleased.
Ning knew that he had an advantage in actual power, but he was still unable to do anything to his opponent. Even when he used the [Novessence Thunder] to restrain his foe's movements, his foe's movements remained unpredictably fast and fluid. In the end, Ning was forced to split his body into two, using two bodies to battle at the same time. Although each body was weaker than his true body, they were still individually superior than his opponent in strength. Ning wasn't exactly slow. With two bodies surrounding and attacking at the same time, as well as the assistance of the [Novessence Thunder, Ning was able to force his opponent into admitting defeat.
The fourth stratum. The eighth battle.
This battle was against a special lifeform. Special lifeforms were different from ordinary cultivators. Ordinary cultivators were all born from the Worldheart of their chaosworld. Natural-born Elder Gods like Nuwa were said to be born from the primordial chaos, but in reality it was the chaosworld generated by the Worldheart which gave birth to them. They were born with mastery over one of the Heavenly Daos of their chaosworld, but they still emerged from the mysterious, marvelous powers of their Worldheart.
True Gods, Empyrean Gods, mortals… all of them were produced from the Worldheart.
Special lifeforms, however, were truly born within unique situations within the endless primordial chaos. There was a qualitative difference between them and cultivators, and although some of them were weak, others of them were inconceivably strong.
This opponent fighting Ning was an ape-like creature. Just prior to the battle, the creature was crunching his way through a tasty meal of strange, metallic objects. It had a body as tough as a Dao weapon and incredible strength, but it was also extremely intelligent. It had even deeper insights into the Dao than Ning did!
However, in the end it still lost.
This was because Ning was just as strong as it was, but was also much faster! Most importantly of all, Ning was wielding six Eternal weapons while the ape had to rely on its two arms… but to actually kill the ape would be incredibly difficult, because Ning was unable to damage its body. Binding it would also be quite difficult. The only thing Ning could do was force it to admit defeat.
The fourth stratum. The ninth battle.
This was an simple, direct battle. Ning easily gained victory.
"I've already won nine battles in a row. One more battle. Just one more win and I'll have made it into the fifth stratum. Things will be much simpler then." Ning was feeling rather confident. Thus far, he hadn't encountered any foes that required him to use his Elementum Waterflame Gourd. That was his final trump card which he would only use when absolutely necessary.
"Next challenge." Ning sent out yet another challenge to a cultivator on the fourth stratum.
"He's won a total of nine victories in a row now."
One of the twelve astral islands within the fifth stratum.
A skinny, swarthy-skinned child with three eyes dressed with strange silver cape was staring intently at the golden book in his hands. "I hear that the almighty Hegemon personally selected this latest crop of newcomers. It really does seem as though some of them possess tremendous potential. This fellow who won nine battles in a row might not necessarily be powerful, but he definitely has been the fastest mover."
The golden book only included some basic information regarding the World-level cultivator on each astral island. It didn't include information such as win-loss totals. Still, it wasn't too hard to divine such information.
Ji Ning, for example. Ever since he had reached the fourth stratum, he had won every battle he was in. He had gained a number of legacy treasures, while the ones he had defeated had been completely drained of their own legacy treasures! Just by watching the movements of the various legacy treasures, one would easily be able to divine who had won which battles. It was obvious that Ning's total legacy treasures had increased nine separate times after arriving on the fourth stratum, while there were nine fourth-stratum cultivators who had lost those exact same treasures. Clearly, he had won nine battles in a row.
"Twenty-one of the newcomers have fought their way into the fourth stratum, but eight ended up being pushed back into the third stratum. Some of them managed to fight their way back into the fourth stratum once more. Only five have won every battle they were in. The fastest has won nine battles, while the second fastest has won six." The skinny, swarthy-skinned child read on. Speed didn't count for much; the slower ones might just be a bit more cautious.
"It is rare for me to meet a worthy opponent. Mmm… once he wins his tenth battle and makes it into the fifth stratum, I'll send him a challenge." A strange smile flashed past the child's face. "I'll teach him a thing or two and let him know that there is a heaven beyond the heavens."
"Oh? He's won nine battles?" A black-robed expert on the fourth stratum was flipping through the golden book as well. Although he was on the fourth stratum, it had been a long, long time since anyone had challenged him. This was because he had once made it to the fifth stratum and thus received the protection of the Astral Islands! Making it to the fifth stratum was a testament to his power. Most of his former opponents now knew how strong he was and wouldn't challenge him without a good reason. As for the newcomers including Ning, few of them would be so rash as to challenge someone under protection.
"Eheh, he's about to make it to the fifth stratum and receive protection? It won't be that easy. Not just everyone is worthy of being protected. You might be just one step away… but I will ruin your hopes."
"You are just one step away, but I'll let you die in the grips of despair. Just thinking about it excites me. Seeing a genius perish in despair is such a lovely sight." The black-robed expert let out a chilling laugh as he issued Ning a challenge.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 34 – The Black-Robed Expert
A gentle wind was blowing through the Astral Islands.
Ji Ning was in an excellent mood today. He was flipping through his golden book when his face suddenly changed. "A challenge?"
Ever since he had risen to the fourth stratum, this was the first time someone else on the same stratum had sent him a challenge! The fourth stratum was just a single step away from the fifth stratum, causing everyone to be quite cautious and unwilling to casually start a duel against an unknown cultivator on the same level. They would first gather as much intelligence as possible before deciding whether or not to challenge the newcomer.
"He is actually one of the protected cultivators?" Ning frowned. "There are only around twenty protected cultivators in all the Astral Islands! All of them are unfathomably strong. For him to challenge me…"
"Wait. I'll wait for a short while." Ning shut his eyes and began to wait calmly.
Each day, a person could only issue a single challenge. Earlier this day, he had already issued a challenge to another member of the fourth stratum, a cultivator who was not under protection. However, that person wouldn't necessarily accept his challenge. The higher the stratum, the more cautious cultivators were about dueling people on that stratum.
This was especially true for fourth stratum cultivators who hadn't received protection!
The closer they were to the fifth stratum and receiving protection, the more cautious they would become. They would generally first defeat some cultivators on the second or third strata, but they wouldn't kill them. Instead, the fourth stratum cultivator would force these weaker cultivators to swear lifeblood oaths that they would accept any challenges from him, with him swearing that he would not take their lives.
That way, once the fourth stratum cultivator received a challenge from someone on his level that he didn't wish to fight, he could immediately issue a challenge to those cultivators on the second and third strata, allowing him to avoid the challenge.
It was possible to avoid battles in this way, but unexpected things would sometimes happen as time went on. For example, those second and third strata cultivators might already be engaged in a duel, preventing them from accepting the challenge from the fourth stratum cultivator. This wouldn't be considered a violation of the oath.
Thus, during the past two weeks, Ning had only been able to successfully challenge someone a single time. All his other challenges had been declined.
"I hope this one will go through. Unless absolutely necessary, I'd rather not duel a protected cultivator until I myself receive protection as well," Ning mused.
If he wasn't protected while his opponent was, their mental approach to any duel would be completely different.
Time ticked on minute by minute.
Rumble.
The golden book now displayed some new information. The cultivator which Ning challenged had just entered into a battle against a different individual.
"Another one avoiding battle." Honestly, Ning had expected this outcome. He had only succeeded once in the past half month, after all.
"No choice but to accept the challenge. Time for me to see just how strong these protected individuals are." Through the golden book, Ning was made aware that this individual was a special lifeform, was under protection, and had quite a few legacy treasures. Other than that, Ning knew nothing at all.
Ning reached out through the golden book and shattered the writ of challenge, accepting the challenge. He then immediately walked towards a room filled with many divine runes. Ning stood there in the center of the room, allowing the formation to be activated and teleport him away.
Rumble…
This was another oceanic island, filled with beauty and grace. Ning appeared atop a small mountain within the island, and he immediately saw the distant, azure-blue waters of the sea as well as the dazzling sands of the beach.
Rumble… another figure suddenly appeared on that same mountain, just a few hundred meters away from Ning. This was a figure that was completely covered in black robes.
Ning looked at his opponent.
The black-robed figure looked back at Ning as well. Only a pair of crimson eyes were visible beneath his dark robes.
"Upon arriving here at the Astral Islands, you immediately ascended to the fourth stratum, then won nine battles in a row." The black-robed figure's voice was cold and dark, and his eyes were completely different from the eyes of a cultivator. Those crimson eyes looked even more bizarre and sinister than the eyes of various strange beasts and monsters which Ning had encountered in the past. This was no cultivator. It was a special lifeform.
"Quite impressive. Given enough time, you would definitely be able to ascend to the fifth stratum. Unfortunately, you won't have that chance." The black-robed expert laughed, and his laughter was extremely grating and ear-piercing.
"Hahaha… you are just one step away, but you are going to die here. Do you not feel despair? Ahaha…" The black-robed expert laughed wildly, a chaotic aura of fire beginning to emerge from his body. This aura alone was probably capable of driving some weaker cultivators to the brink of insanity.
Ning simply frowned. No enmity existed between the two of them, and yet this man wished to destroy Ning's future prospects?
"You talk a big game," Ning said calmly.
Boom! A large black sword suddenly appeared in the black-robed expert's right hand. Although it could be described as a sword, it didn't have any edges to it at all. The aura emanating from this greatsword gave Ning an impression of incredible weight and density.
"Ahahaha, I dare make these claims because I have the power to take your life. You simply haven't been here in the Astral Islands long enough, and you haven't undergone sufficient tempering. There is no place in the outside world which is quite like the Astral Islands, with its many elites and geniuses for you to test yourself against. I think you won't be able to take so much as my very first sword-blow." The black-robed expert let out a bizarre laugh.
"Hmph." Ning's gaze turned sharp, and a crimson-gold lightning seal suddenly appeared on his forehead.
Ning was beginning to get rather irritated by this black-robed expert's words. Screw the talking; he was going to give this person a taste of his [Novessence Thunder] first!
Bang! A crimson-gold streak of lightning shot out with incredible speed, giving the black-robed expert no time to dodge at all. The lightning bolt hammered directly against him, causing his body to tremble slightly. However, he was still able to stand there calmly.
"What powerful lightning. Unfortunately, I'm the wrong person for you to use it against." The black-robed expert completely ignored the [Novessence Thunder, allowing it to crackle and writhe around his body. A few flickers of lightning brushed against some of the nearby boulders, instantly reducing them to dust.
"You can die now." The black-robed expert struck out with his sword.
Ning didn't dare to be too brash. This person knew that he had won nine battles in a row on the fourth stratum, but still dared to make the claim that his very first sword-blow would be too much for Ning to handle. Without a doubt, this strike would be an extraordinary one.
Boom! Once this strike was unleashed, the skies above the oceanic island began to dim. Countless flaming clouds began to gather in the air above them , and the sword crushed down upon Ning as though it was bringing the might of Heaven and Earth down with it.
The sword came crashing down towards Ning with a feeling of absolute, immeasurable ponderance.
"Allgod stance!" A cold, fierce light flashed through Ning's eyes as well as he unleashed the most dominating, explosive sword stance he possessed. As Ning's insights into the sword had risen, his Allgod stance had become increasingly extraordinary as well. It was now able to unleash a truly significant amount of the might of Violetjewel's quintessence core.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Ning immediately manifested [Three Heads, Six Arms]. His six swords transformed into six blood-colored wyrms that howled towards the massive world-sword that was crashing down upon him.
BOOM!!! When the first blood-colored wyrm slammed into the greatsword, the blood-colored wyrm was brought to a halt but the greatsword was knocked flying backwards.
"What?!" The black-robed expert let out a startled shout.
"He does have a bit of power. No wonder he bragged so much." Ning was secretly startled. Thanks to the azureflower mist energy, Ning was as strong as a Daolord of the First Step and far above the vast majority of World-level cultivators. He was also using an Eternal weapon and had unleashed his most powerful sword-stance, a strike which was so powerful that very few were capable of withstanding it.
And yet… that black-robed expert's greatsword had managed to halt his strike in its tracks! But of course, it had only been able to block Ning's first strike. Ning had six Eternal weapons he was using!
Although one of the blood-colored wyrms had been destroyed, the other five continued to surge forward towards the black-robed expert.
"How can…" The black-robed expert was absolutely stunned. A blazing crimson warblade appeared in his other hand, a saber that gave off a similar aura of incredible ponderance. He joined his saber and his sword in front of him, using them to block Ning's attacks.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The five blood wyrms came crashing down with enough power to shake the heavens.
BOOM!
The entire mountain they were on actually collapsed, and the island itself split apart as the ground below the strike was completely caved in. As for the black-robed expert, Ning had already smashed him down into the very bottom of the sea.
Swoosh! Moments later, the black-robed expert came charging out of the waters of the sea. He hovered there in midair, staring at the distant Ji Ning who was standing atop a gray boulder.
"You talked a big game, but you don't have much to back it up." Ning let out a chuckle.
"You…!" The black-robed expert was enraged.
There was a reason for his earlier braggadocio. He was an extremely powerful special lifeform, and despite being at the World level he was completely capable of unleashing a level of power comparable to that of a Daolord of the First Step. Given that his two Eternal weapons were also quite suited to him and to unleashing the type of power he specialized in, most fourth stratum foes would never dare to take his blows head on.
That was why he had felt so confident in his abilities! What he didn't realize was that for many years now, the way Ning had fought was by directly crushing his foes with overwhelming power.
"Your swords are quite powerful, and you are just as strong as I am." The black-robed expert's voice began to transform, turning low and gravelly. As for his crimson eyes, they began to be filled with an even more insane look than before. "You are now qualified to see my true form."
Boom!
The area around the black-robed expert suddenly became filled with endless tendrils of dark-red flames. He was like the god of this world of flames, and his black robes suddenly vanished, revealing the form underneath…
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 35 – A Miserable Victory
It was a humanoid creature whose skin was completely pitch-black. His eyes were crimson red in color, and the way in which he stared at Ji Ning made Ning feel uncomfortable. This pitch-black humanoid's skin suddenly began to crack and split apart, revealing a dim crimson substance beneath the skin.
Pop! Every so often, a piece of that crimson material would suddenly shoot out from beneath his skin, moving vastly beyond the speed of light and causing spacetime around it to twist and distort.
The creature simply stood there, allowing his 'skin' to crack and pop. Every so often, more of that crimson substance would shoot out. Whenever it touched the waters of the ocean, the water would begin to hiss and boil away. Whenever it touched the the remnants of the island, the island would shudder and break apart even further.
"You've forced me to reveal my true form, which means you have to die. You are indeed qualified to make it to the fifth stratum, but unfortunately for you… you ran into me." The sable creature spoke in a hoarse voice, and a few flecks of that crimson material flew out from his mouth with each word.
"Aren't you the ugly one," Ning said softly.
"You-!"
The sable creature was both embarrassed and enraged. Cultivators were the true masters of the Endless Territories, after all. They were simply too numerous! Even though he was an incredibly powerful special lifeform, when he was born from the primordial chaos he found himself to be the only member of his race. Thus, he changed his appearance and always wore a black robe, spending his life within the world of cultivators.
As a result, even he himself felt that his true appearance was rather ugly. However, only by revealing his true form was he capable of unleashing his full power. There was nothing else he could do. When normal cultivators insulted him, he wouldn't be that irritated, but the person who just spoke was a powerful cultivator who was on his general level of power.
"All you can do is flap your mouth. Remember this in your next life. The person who killed you is Sabafey." The sable creature let out a low growl as he gripped the heavy warblade and the heavy greatsword with his hands.
"What an ugly name as well." Ning was intentionally mocking him. He could tell that this special lifeform had a fairly weak Dao-heart.
"Die." Two sonorous streaks of saber-light and sword-light struck out, carrying an aura of incredible majesty and power.
"Hmph." Ning once more manifested three heads and six arms, using his six Eternal weapons fight back.
"Eh? What's this?" When Ning transformed into a streak of lightning and charged forward, he immediately sensed spacetime twisting around him. This had an impact on even his own agility and movements. Clearly, this Sabafey was capable of causing spacetime to twist all around him in a domain-type maneuver.
"Hmph." Ning let out an angry snort as that streak of crimson-gold lightning once more blasted out of his forehead. The lightning was shaped like a Flood Dragon as it struck out, but once it moved closer to that black humanoid, it was impacted by some of the crimson substance spurting out of its cracked skin. The crimson-gold lightning instantly began to tremble.
"We haven't even clashed yet, but that crimson substance shooting out of his body and this domain around him is already having an impact on my abilities. So this is the power of his true form?" Ning was secretly nervous.
Boom!
Boom!
A streak of black light suddenly shot out. This was the sable freak, Sabafey!
A streak of lightning shot out as well. This was the three-headed, six-armed, white-robed Ji Ning. Crimson-gold lightning continuously shot out of Ning's forehead.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The two instantly clashed multiple times in midair, causing the air around them to tremble, the fragments of the island beneath them to sink deeper into the sea, and tremendous tidal waves to arise.
The two of them battled in a wild orgy of destruction, and Ji Ning was clearly at a disadvantage in this fight.
"Damn."
Ning was forced to repeatedly dodge backwards, then charge forward once more. As for the black freak Sabafey, he fought in an utterly dominating fashion. Although he only had a single warblade and a single greatsword, his strength and savagery was enough to allow his two weapons to completely overwhelm Ji Ning.
In fact, the unique spacetime domain surrounding this creature was enough to make him superior to Ning in speed as well.
"So his true form makes him this much stronger than before." Ning could feel how difficult this battle was becoming. The power of every single blow from the enemy's sword and saber was superior to Ning's power. Even though Ning had six weapons to his foe's two, he was still at a marked disadvantage in this fight.
In truth, this special lifeform was indeed as physically strong as a Daolord of the First Step. He was on par with Ji Ning, and his insights into the Dao were even more profound than Ning's. This was the reason why the power of his every blow exceeded Ning's power.
As for their earlier clash? Before revealing his true form and unleashing his full power, he looked just like an ordinary cultivator dressed in black robes. He had only been able to unleash roughly ten or twenty percent of his maximum power in that state, which was why his full-strength blow was merely on par with one of Ning's sword-strikes. Things were completely different now.
"You are definitely going to die. You are gonna die!" Sabafey's hoarse, maddened voice rang out. He held an advantage in both speed and power!
This was the first time since arriving at the Astral Islands that Ning had been in such a terrible situation. He was being completely dominated.
This was someone who was just as fast and as strong as him, but who also had an even higher level of insight into the Dao. Sabafey had been training here at the Astral Islands for an extremely long period of time, and he possessed that strange domain which was even stronger than Ning's [Novessence Thunder].
Ning was being crushed.
As the saying goes, if you always stay on the defensive, sooner or later you will lose. Ning no longer dared to let things continue like this.
"Come out!" Ning was furious as well. This Sabafey really was trying to kill him and sever his path.
Whoosh!
A black-crimson gourd suddenly appeared out of nowhere next to Ning. This was the Elementum Waterflame Gourd! The gourd hovered behind Ning, then instantly spat out two streaks of dragon-shaped lightning. One streak of lightning was the Watersmoke Lightning, and it looked a flood of black water descending from an enormous stormcloud. The power of this lightning was so tremendous that it alone was superior to Ning's [Novessence Thunder]. As for the second streak of lightning, it looked like a cloud of flame and was just as strong as the first streak of lightning.
Two streaks of lightning. The first was Watersmoke Lightning, the second was Firecloud lightning. Fire and water were incompatible by nature! They were opposing forces! But these two streaks of Dao lightning simultaneously coiled around each other as they thundered towards the sable freak, Sabafey.
"What is that?!" The sable creature was shocked.
BOOM! BOOM!
The two streaks of Dao lightning showed no mercy at all. They simultaneously hammered down upon the sable creature, then began smashing into each other as well. As the two streaks of fiery lightning and watery lightning collided, they unleashed an utterly ruinous level of explosive power that caused even Ning himself to be in awe.
Even most supreme World Gods would be instantly slain by such an attack. As for transcendent World Gods, they would be heavily injured at the very least. A few consecutive blows would ensure that they would perish.
Only Daolords of the First Step would be able to endure such a blow, but even they would be heavily restricted and bound.
Boom! Boom! The two streaks of Dao lightning furiously swirled around the sable creature's body, and each time they collided they released tremendous amounts of power, causing Sabafey's speed and strength to both fall dramatically.
"This is Dao lightning!" Sabafey called out in shock.
"Yes it is." Ning charged forward once more.
"So what if you have Dao lightning? It can at most slow me down. It can't kill me!" Sabafey remained as ferocious and savage as ever. His true body was indeed comparable to that of a Daolord of the First Step, allowing him to endure the strikes of these two types of Dao lightning. However, he was still hindered tremendously by them. He was now slightly slower than Ning!
Boom! Boom! Boom! His warblade and his greatsword still held roughly half of their former level of power. He was still able to crush Ning in power.
Still, things were now much simpler for Ning. Now that he had an advantage in speed, he was able to advance and withdraw at his leisure. In addition, his foe's advantage in strength was now much smaller than before.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
The two continued to battle ferociously.
"I am a special lifeform. This cultivator has to be using his divine power at an incredible rate. He won't be able to hang on for much longer, while I'll be able to keep going for quite some time." Sabafey was filled with confidence. He was certain he would be able to keep fighting for an extended period of time.
"Every single drop of my azureflower mist energy represents the distillation of all my divine power, heartforce, and Immortal energy. I'm not using any particularly powerful divine abilities for this fight. I'll be able to go on for ages. This special lifeform has to be using some sort of secret art which allows him to release tremendous amounts of power, but I'm certain he won't be able to maintain it for too long." Ning was filled with confidence as well.
Ning was merely using [Three Heads, Six Arms]. This divine ability used up fairly little divine power. Ning was mainly relying on his azureflower mist energy in this battle, and it wasn't being used up that quickly.
This battle went on for more than two full hours.
At first, both were very confident. As time went on, both Sabafey and Ning grew increasingly amazed. By now, Ning only had sixteen drops of his azureflower mist energy left.
"I admit defeat!" Finally, Sabafey let out a disgruntled growl. "Given how much power you have unleashed, you have to be using up divine power at an incredible rate. How is it even possible for you to continue fighting for this long? How?!"
If Ning was using abilities like the [Starseizing Hand, he would indeed be using up divine power at an astonishing rate.
Ning let out a sigh of relief.
He had won. Finally, he had won.
He could sense the golden book in his possession begin to transform. He was now under the protection of the Astral Islands, which acknowledged the fact that he had just won ten battles in a row on the fourth island.
"Hand over your legacy treasures." Ning stared at him. If it wasn't for the fact that this person was also under protection, Ning would've shown him no mercy at all and slain him. This person wasn't going to be able to hold on for much longer.
"Don't be smug. I was defeated by the others on the fifth stratum, after all." Sabafey let out a hoarse growl. "There are many on the fifth stratum who are stronger than me. You are indeed quite strong, but your insights into the sword are quite mediocre. Ahaha… you are even inferior to a special lifeform like myself."
As he spoke, he waved his hand and tossed out a large amount of legacy treasures. Upon losing, he had to hand over everything he had unless Ning voluntarily accepted less. He didn't dare violate the rules of the Astral Islands.
"EXIT!" Sabafey raised his head and let out an angry shout.
Whoosh! Spacetime twisted around him, causing his sable form to disappear into thin air.
Ning waved his hand, collecting the many legacy treasures. His golden book immediately sent him an alert, informing him that he had already acquired a full legacy and that he was permitted to leave the Astral Islands whenever he wished.
"A full set?" Ning wasn't that surprised. He knew that Sabafey had many legacy treasures on him, including a full legacy set.
Swoosh!
Ning waved his hand again, causing the Elementum Waterflame Gourd to fly towards him as well.
Ning put away the gourd. If it hadn't been for this gourd he probably would've lost this fight, even if he was able to keep himself alive. Upon losing, he would've been knocked down to the third stratum once more, where he would've had to slowly accumulate enough wins for another promotion.
"Sabafalle. He was merely an individual who wasn't strong enough to stay in the fifth stratum permanently. He was beaten down into the fourth stratum… and yet, he is incredibly powerful. My sword-arts are indeed a weak point." Prior to this, Ning didn't fully realize how great a weakness this was. However, the more he battled against other incredibly talented figures, the more he realized how lacking his sword-arts were. In the end, he simply hadn't spent enough time as a World-level cultivator.
"So many of the cultivators on the fifth stratum are more powerful than him?"
A flicker of battle-lust appeared in Ning's eyes. "Good. The stronger they are, the better."
Ning raised his head and called out, "Exit!"
Whoosh.
Spacetime twisted around Ning, causing him to be teleported away and back to his own astral island.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 36 – The Watcher in the Dark Abyss
The six strata of astral islands continuously circled around each other in a very orderly manner.
At the very top stratum, the sixth stratum, there was just a single astral island. The fifth stratum had a total of twelve astral islands that slowly circled each other.
Rumble…
One of the hundred-plus islands belonging to the fourth stratum began to slowly fly upwards.
"What?"
"Is that…"
"Someone made it to the fifth stratum."
The many cultivators on the lower strata of the Astral Islands all raised their heads to stare at the higher-level islands. Hundreds of thousands of them were watching as this particular island ascended from the fourth stratum to the fifth stratum.
Many cultivators felt complicated feelings in their heart. They dreamed of being able to make it to the fifth stratum. That way, they would similarly be able to receive the protection of the Astral Islands! Alas, this was far, far too difficult a task.
"A change in destiny…"
This was what countless cultivators were murmuring silently to themselves.
"He was quite fast. He was brought here alongside the rest of us in this batch, but he actually made it to the fifth stratum before I did." A jade-haired woman dressed in silvery, semi-translucent gauze was murmuring to herself softly from within her island on the fourth stratum. "And a cultivator at that. I've never ever met any World-level cultivators who are a match for me, but almost as soon as I arrived in the Brightshore Kingdom I encountered one. How intriguing. What's more, the Brightshore Kingdom treats cultivators and special lifeforms equally, giving no special preferences or advantages to either."
"I like this place." A smile appeared on the jade-haired woman's face as natural mist began to swirl around her.
"I never would've thought that those puny cultivators would give rise to someone who might be a match for me. He actually made it to the fifth stratum before I did." A devilishly handsome silver-haired youth was murmuring softly to himself.
He was a member of the Aeonians who had long ago found the path he needed to take to become a Samsara Daolord. However, he wanted to become more powerful before doing so. That way, he would benefit even further from his Awakening of his Aeonian bloodlines.
Still, he had to admit that the Brightshore Kingdom truly had gathered many freakishly talented figures. The fourth stratum alone was filled with many figures who had been quite difficult for him to overcome. This made him quite cautious.
Anyone capable of surging into the fifth stratum so quickly was definitely a powerful figure.
"Although cultivators are individually weak, there's simply too many of them. There are far more of them around than we Aeonians. In the end, the law of large numbers means they will give birth to many freakishly strong figures." The silver-haired youth mused to himself, "Once I enter the fifth stratum, I'll definitely have to test him out myself."
Ning's ascension to the fifth stratum did indeed arouse the interest of quite a few of the other freakishly talented World-level cultivators. The ability to make it into the fifth stratum was a testament to his strength!"
"Another person has joined us in the fifth stratum?"
"Interesting. A few days from now, I'll have to give him a challenge and see how he does."
"I wager that Kilostar will be the first challenger yet again. Ahh, forget it. Just let it be him."
The fourth stratum and the fifth stratum were completely different.
The cultivators on the fourth stratum weren't under any protection. As a result, they would rarely accept or issue challenges. They were all quite cautious. However, these twelve peerless geniuses on the fifth stratum were all incredibly strong and talented figures. This was why they were able to keep their positions within the fifth stratum stable. Even if they occasionally fell down to the next level, they would quickly rise up once more. All of them delighted in battle.
In fact, the entire reason why they were still here was because they wanted to keep fighting!
As for the legacies? There was no point in being greedy. They merely needed to local the ones they actually needed. The best part of being here was the ability to battle against all these World-level cultivators. The experience they gained through combat was quite useful to them.
An astral island within the fifth stratum.
A skinny, swarthy child dressed in a silver cape was flipping through his golden book, roaring with laughter. "Ahahah! He didn't disappoint me. He actually beat that special lifeform named Sabafalle. Although Sabafalle is a bit of an idiot, beating him is no easy task. Interesting, interesting."
"Still, simply defeating Sabafalle doesn't mean much. Sabafalle is completely incapable of standing stably amongst the ranks of the other fifth stratum individuals. Kid, I'm going to teach you the true meaning of the phrase, 'there is always someone stronger than the strong'." The skinny, swarthy child laughed.
"Challenge issued!"
He issued a direct challenge to Ning through the golden book.
"Heh heh heh… the other eleven fellows on the fifth stratum will all give me some face. Same as always! I'll be the first to challenge the newcomer." A look of excitement was in the swarthy-skinned child's eyes.
All of them had lived together for quite some time. They had formed certain habits long ago.
Each time a newcomer made it to the fifth stratum for the first time, it would be Kilostar who would challenge that person first. Kilostar wasn't necessarily the most powerful of the twelve, but he had the fewest weaknesses. He was capable of dealing with any foes that appeared. Even if he had to fight against that terrifying fellow from the sixth stratum, he'd still be able to at least keep himself safe! In other words… he was capable of dealing with any World-level cultivator, no matter how freakishly talented that person was.
The dark abyss directly below the hundreds of thousands of astral islands.
At the very bottom of the abyss.
Hiss. Crackle. Nine strange flames were flickering here.
Above the flames was a horizontally placed longspear that was over a thousand meters long. An enormous haunch of meat that was at least three hundred meters long was currently spitted on the spear.
The beast's flesh was being slowly roasted by the nine flames, and its surface was just slowly turning red. To fully cook it would probably take quite some time.
"Delicious. Absolutely delicious." A burly, nearly-naked man with tousled black hair was seated, dressed in simple battle garbs. In front of him was a large basin that was over thirty meters long, filled with roasted meat. He was chomping through the meat with relish.
Sitting opposite of him was a muscular golden-haired man dressed in golden armor. This man also had an enormous basin front of him, also filled with roasted meat.
"King Wu, your hunting skills really aren't bad. This Bloodflame Dragon had to be comparable to a Verge-level Daolord. Its flesh is simply savory." The golden-armored warrior was crunching his way through the meat as he spoke. Not just anyone was powerful enough to chew through this! "Hunting these things really isn't easy. I think you Imperials must have damn near wiped them out of the Endless Territories by now."
"We pretty much wiped them out ages ago." The black-haired, nearly-naked man shook his head. "The Hegemon, that old bastard, captured more than anyone else. He's able to instantly teleport to any territory he pleases, whereas I actually had to physically run across countless territories before I was able to find a single Bloodflame Dragon. I then had to pretend to be a cultivator, for fear that once it realized who I was it would self-destruct rather than let me capture it. It took forever for me to capture it! Ehehe… but now that I have one, I can slowly savor it for an extremely long period of time."
Bloodflame Dragons were incredibly, terrifyingly powerful beasts. They were unlike cultivators or Aeonians; they neither used divine power nor had any Immortal energy. They were actually similar to bugbeasts, but they were far more powerful than bugbeasts.
However, it was incredibly rare for one of them to be found in the Endless Territories. They had been driven to the point of extinction long ago, precisely because the Brightshore Imperials' favorite food was Bloodflame Dragons.
A Bloodflame Dragon which had reached the Verge of the Daomerge had a body that was comparable in size to an entire chaos star. If you ate just a thousand meters of it with each meal, you would be able to able to feast for an extremely long period of time.
Alas, ancient creatures such as the members of the Brightshore Imperials would live for even longer.
"King Wu." The golden-armored warrior glanced off into the distance towards a strange beast that was wreathed in flames. This creature possessed tremendous vitality and power, but it was currently suffering all sorts of unspeakable torments. "I heard that you Imperials just gained a new clansmen. Shouldn't you take his training a bit more seriously?"
"For me to even keep an eye out for him me being much more serious than usual. Yeah, this abyss is filled with plenty of danger, but so long as I keep an eye out I'll be able to guarantee that he stays alive," the black-haired man said between mouthfuls of meat.
"Eh?" The black-haired man suddenly raised his head to stare upwards.
His gaze pierced through the darkness of the abyss as well as the protection of the Astral Islands, allowing him to see Ji Ning. Ji Ning was currently flipping through his golden book within his room in his astral island.
Right at this moment, Ning suddenly found himself seized by an invisible, inexplicable terror. It was as though some terrifying creature had just taken notice of him.
"It seems a new kid is about to join your Twelve Palaces as well." The black-haired man looked towards the golden-armored warrior. "He made it to the fifth stratum quite quickly, and he's a cultivator just like you are."
"He's not bad, I suppose." The golden-armored man laughed. "We cultivators are fairly weak in general. It is quite rare for an extremely powerful cultivator to emerge. We simply can't compare to the members of your race. All of you are born with utterly enormous power."
"Is that comparable? Is that even comparable?!" The black-haired man glared at him. "How many of you are there? How few of us are there? The Hegemon, that old bastard… how much time does he need to spend wandering the Endless Territories before he is able to find another member of our race? For each new member of our race that is born, another ten Daolords emerge amongst you cultivators. You cultivators give birth to monsters by the bundle. Just look at the Twelve Palaces. How many Daolords do you have? And how few members do we have in our imperial clan?"
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 37 – The Plight of Su Youji
"Ahaha!" The golden-armored warrior laughed. "Fine, I misspoke."
"Sometimes, I really envy you cultivators. There is a stupid large number of you. You guys are absolutely everywhere. Every single territory has you cultivators in them." The black-haired man sighed and shook his head. Suddenly…
"THAT BRAT! Is he trying to die?!" The black-haired man's eyes suddenly bulged out. Two streaks of golden light shot out of his eyes, passing through the barriers of spacetime and reaching a distant figure in a distance place.
The Astral Islands.
"What just happened?" Ning's entire body had turned stuff. He felt as though an utterly terrifying presence had suddenly taken notice of him. However, that terrifying sense of danger quickly dissipated.
"Who was that just now?" Ning guessed that it had to have been an incredibly powerful figure who was scrying upon him, a figure that didn't even bother to hide his aura. If he had, there was no way Ning would've been able to sense him.
"That sense of danger… it was second only to the sensation I felt when I encountered that terrifying behemoth that brought me here," Ning mused to himself.
The terrifying behemoth that had devoured him and brought him to this place was the most terrifying thing Ning had ever encountered in his life. It vastly surpassed any and all experts Ning had encountered in the past.
The Brightshore Kingdom was an organization that was on the same general level of power as the entire Dao Alliance itself. The Dao Alliance was unfathomably powerful, while the Brightshore Kingdom was very secretive and quite powerful as well.
"Doesn't matter, I guess. Either of them can crush me like a bug." Ning couldn't be bothered to worry about it. The point of the almighty Hegemon bringing them here was to raise a crop of powerful cultivators. Even the most powerful of organizations would need constant injections of fresh blood, after all.
No matter how powerful their elite experts were, only their Eternal Emperors would live eternally. Samsara Daolords who did not succeed in the Daomerge would all perish eventually. Thus, they needed to ensure a constant, steady stream of new blood.
Ning was one of them, a future expert of the Brightshore Kingdom.
"Mm. Fortunately, Youji is still alive." Ning flipped through the golden bok again, then let out a sigh of relief.
"Eh? Someone just challenged me?" Ning frowned. One of the talented geniuses of the fifth stratum had just issued him a challenge. It must be understood that the twelve members of the fifth stratum had been on that stratum for a long period of time. They were all definitely superior to Sabafalle in power.
Ning had been forced to pull out his Elementum Waterflame Gourd for the sake of defeating Sabafalle.
"I'm currently protected by the Astral Islands. Even if I lose, I would at most lose some legacy treasures. However… I need to make sure this set gets to Su Youji first. If too much time passes, something unexpected might happen." Ning didn't dare to be too arrogant.
Ning waved his hand. Whoosh! Three hundred and twenty legacy treasures suddenly appeared before him. These were all fiery red leaves. The fiery leaves were all gathered together, and Ning could immediately sense the tremendous amount of information they contained, as well as that blazingly powerful aura of fire.
This was a legacy pertaining to the Dao of Fire. Sabafalle, Ning's previous opponent, had walked the Dao of Fire. The reason he had kept these legacy treasures with him was so that he could be in constant contact with the blazing will they contained. However, the treasures had now fallen into Ning's hands.
All he had to do was swear a lifeblood oath and he would immediately be able to study this legacy.
Ning did end up learning it, but he simply memorized its contents. This legacy was indeed quite profound and remarkable. Just by reviewing the entire legacy from start to finish, Ning's insights into the Dao of Fire increased substantially, reaching a level of near-parity with his Dao of Water or his Dao of Thunder.
"Possession of a legacy really does make a big difference," Ning mused to himself. "Still, my Dao is the Dao of the Sword. I can't waste my time and energy on fire." Ning quickly buried this legacy into another corner of his mind. He had simply memorized it to gain a bit of additional experience, as all Daos shared certain commonalities. This legacy contained many abstruse mysteries that would be of some use to Ning in his mastery of the Dao of the Sword.
"Time to challenge her." After looking through the legacy treasure, Ning nodded silently to himself. Su Youji was quite talented in the Dao of Fire. If he gave this to her, it would be of tremendous benefit to her in mastering the Dao of Fire. She would improve quite quickly.
Ning sent Su Youji a challenge.
"I hope she accepts. She has to accept." Ning was rather worried and nervous.
He had learned the location of Su Youji's astral island from Daolord Flameflow, but Su Youji didn't know that Ning had reached the fifth stratum. If she suddenly saw someone from the fifth stratum challenge her, would she accept?
If she did not, then Ning would have to accept this duel from Kilostar, his fifth stratum challenger. If he won, that was one thing, but if he lost… his legacy treasures would all be gone as well.
It wouldn't be too hard for Ning to get another set of legacy treasures, but to get another set that was of the Dao of Fire which Su Youji could use would be quite difficult. In addition, if too much time passed… Su Youji might perish.
The bottom stratum of the hundreds of thousands of astral islands. One of the islands was covered with plants and flowers. This was a very beautiful island.
Su Youji, dressed in fiery red robes, was lying within the grass, staring at the skies. A look of exhaustion was on her face.
"If this keeps up, I really won't be able to endure for much longer. Master… I probably won't be able to accompany you for much longer."
Su Youji lay there in the grass, utterly exhausted. She truly had almost no energy left.
Ji Ning had given her his bugbeasts and his set of Hellwind Golems. At first, she had indeed been able to win quite a few battles in a row with ease. On the first stratum, there really weren't that many who were a match for her.
But soon, trouble began to appear.
News that she had many bugbeasts and a set of Hellwind Golems quickly began to spread. There were many powerful World-level cultivators who wanted those bugbeasts and those powerful golems!
For example, there wasn't a significant difference in power between cultivators on the third stratum and those on the fourth stratum. If they had a set of Hellwind Golems helping them out, a third stratum cultivator might be able to charge into the fourth stratum and have a chance at acquiring a full legacy.
Especially for those who specialized in close combat, a set of Hellwind Golems and a host of bugbeasts would allow them to become far stronger.
Many of the World-level cultivators who had been living here at the Astral Islands for a long time knew each other. At critical times, they would issue each other challenges to avoid dangerous battles. Thus, in the end there were three powerful World-level cultivators who found out about the golems and the bugbeasts.
Two of these three came from the third floor, with one coming from the fourth floor. All of them furiously challenged Su Youji day in and day out. Su Youji did her best to avoid them. When she could not, she would go fight the ones on the third floor.
"I was able to hold on for a few times… but how much longer will I be able to hold?" Su Youji mumbled to herself. She had been here for more than half a year, and the past few months had been an utter nightmare.
Rumble…
Sudenly, an island ascended from the fourth stratum to the fifth stratum.
"The fifth stratum?" Su Youji's eyes lit up. "A cultivator reached the fifth stratum? Could it be Master?" She deeply hoped that it was Ning, but she knew that there were many individuals of tremendous talent and skill amongst the fourth stratum.
"I hope it is Master. So long as Master can stay alive… that is enough." Su Youji prayed silently. She didn't hope for Ning to rescue her. Logically speaking, there was no way for Ning to even find out which island she was on.
Just as her thoughts were racing, suddenly…
"A challenge?" Su Youji could sense that yet another challenge had been sent to her golden book. She remained quite calm, because she received challenges every single day. Her bugbeasts and golems were simply too irresistible.
"A challenge from the fifth stratum?" Su Youji was badly shocked.
Her bugbeasts and golems were indeed attractive, but it made no sense for those protected freaks on the fifth stratum to take an interest in them. Prior to this, the highest-level challenge had come from someone on the fourth stratum, and that had been her only challenge from that stratum.
"Eh? It seems… to be from that person who just made it to the fifth stratum?" Su Youji quickly noticed this. Every day, she would go through the golden book, and she recognized the twelve markers that originally belonged to the fifth stratum islands. Given her memory as a Chaos Immortal, she was naturally able to memorize those twelve at once. The person who had just challenged her was not one of the twelve.
"This person challenged me immediately after reaching the fifth stratum? If this person has already received protection, it makes no sense for him to be interested in my bugbeasts and golems. Could it… truly be Master?" Many thoughts flashed through Su Youji's mind.
She didn't dare to believe it.
She felt that it was all wishful thinking.
However… she also had the vague feeling that it really could be her master. Logically speaking, there was no reason for a newly ascended fifth stratum expert to immediately issue a challenge to her.
"Could it be that Master had a way to discover astral island which I am on?" Su Youji hesitated for a long moment.
"Screw it. I'm at the brink of collapse anyhow. Even if it really is an enemy, I'd be satisfied with my defeat coming at the hands of someone on the fifth stratum." Su Youji gritted her teeth, then accepted the challenge.
She quickly entered a room in her island covered by divine runes. As the runes lit up and activated, spacetime began to twist around her as she was teleported off of the astral island.
This was yet another oceanic island. There was a volcano on this island that was belching lava and flames, causing the island to be covered with a layer of grimy soot.
Su Youji appeared out of nowhere. She immediately saw a figure off in the distance.
A white-robed figure.
A figure carrying a sword on his back.
"Master…" Su Youji's body trembled slightly as she murmured these words.
"Youji." The figure turned and looked at her.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 38 – Kilostar
Su Youji's eyes instantly reddened. She was both shocked and delighted. Her heart was filled with many complex emotions. She felt excited for Ji Ning upon realizing that he had fought his way through so many World-level cultivators to make it to the fifth stratum, and also celebrated for herself.
The exhaustion and pressure she felt was all wiped away.
"Youji." Ning's form blurred as he transformed into a streak of light that flew to her side. He looked at her carefully. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I'm just so happy." Su Youji finally smiled, and her smile was absolutely incandescent. She now looked like her old self again. "If you came just a bit later, Master, you probably wouldn't be able to find me."
"What's going on?" Ning was shocked. "You are on the first stratum. Those bugbeasts and golems should've been enough to let you hang on for quite some time."
"Against the first stratum cultivators, I would've been, yes. But third stratum and fourth stratum cultivators often send me challenges." Su Youji said helplessly, "I can't even avoid them."
"Third and fourth stratum? There are so many cultivators on the first stratum. Why would they single you… shit!" Ning turned pale. He realized what had happened. He had given her those bugbeasts and golems with the best of intentions, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Here at the Astral Islands, whenever someone was discovered to be in possession of good treasures that person would often find himself targeted. What, then, of such a powerful set of golems and bugbeasts? Although it was hard for most of the cultivators here to send each other messages, there were indeed a few alliances and partnership. It made sense that word would eventually spread to the third and fourth strata.
"I screwed up." Ning shook his head.
"It wasn't your fault, Master. Even I didn't realize what was going to happen. Only later on did I understand how badly they wanted my golems and bugbeasts," Su Youji said.
"You must have been exhausted." Ning could imagine how life had been for her recently. Those third and fourth strata cultivators had assuredly done everything they could to try and force Su Youji to fight them. Although she had struggled and fought back, how long would she be able to do so? As more time passed, most likely there would be even more powerful cultivators who would take interest in her.
"I admit defeat." Ning suddenly spoke out in a high voice, his words echoing within the air above the volcanic island.
"Master?" Su Youji was stunned.
"I admit defeat in my duel against you." Ning laughed. "This set of legacy treasures is for you. Don't you need any other treasures?"
Su Youji suddenly realized what was happening.
"Hurry up. This set of legacy treasures is useless to me, and I've already received the protection of the Astral Islands." Ning laughed as he waved his hand, causing the three hundred and twenty leaves filled with the Dao of Fire to float over towards Su Youji.
Su Youji immediately waved her hand to accept this legacy. She had won this battle. If she wanted to do so, she could demand that Ning hand over all of his legacy treasures. But of course, since she was going to leave the Astral Islands there was absolutely no point to acquiring more of these legacy treasures. You had to acquire a full set in order to gain a legacy, after all.
"Alright. Now that you have a full legacy, hurry up and leave the Astral Islands," Ning instructed. "This place is far too dangerous for you."
For someone like Su Youji, this was indeed an incredibly dangerous place. Without the bugbeasts, she was at high risk of death. With the bugbeasts and golems, she became the target of even more powerful cultivators.
"Alright." Su Youji felt many complex emotions in her heart.
"Also. Once you leave the Astral Islands, do your best to enter the Twelve Palaces," Ning said. "At present, you most likely aren't strong enough to attract their interest. However, now that you have this legacy, you'll be able to grow much more powerful. Focus on your cultivation, and if the opportunity arises you should do your best to enter the palaces. In the future, I will join the Twelve Palaces as well."
"Twelve Palaces?" Su Youji was puzzled.
"The most powerful organization in the Brightshore Kingdom. At the very apex of the Brightshore Kingdom stands its Twelve Palaces and its imperial clan." Ning gave her a simple explanation. "You only acquired a full legacy thanks to my assistance, and so the Twelve Palaces won't grant you automatic entry. You'll need to train hard and undergo many trials before being permitted to enter the Twelve Palaces."
"Understood." Su Youji knew her own limits. To even escape this place alive was a stroke of tremendous luck. She didn't daydream about being granted automatic entry into the Twelve Palaces.
"This is my talisman. Keep it with you at all times, and I'll be able to sense your location. After I leave the Astral Islands, I'll go find you." As Ning spoke, he handed out a jade talisman to her.
Su Youji accepted the jade talisman. It was slick and cold in her hands. She nodded slowly. "Alright."
"Go, then. Be careful once you enter the rest of the Brightshore Kingdom," Ning instructed.
"Don't worry. After what happened here, I'm going to be even more careful in the future. Besides… even if the outside world is a dangerous place, it can't possibly be as dangerous as these astral islands." Su Youji chuckled.
These two, master and retainer, didn't have too long to chat. In the end, they had to part once more as they were each teleported to their own astral islands.
Su Youji first memorized the entire legacy, then chose to depart.
"Damn."
"That bitch actually acquired a full legacy and left."
"That freak who made it to the fifth stratum lost to her on purpose? No wonder she had such valuable bugbeasts and golems. It must've been that freak who gave it to her."
"Do you think that freak who made it to the fifth stratum will take revenge on us?"
"We are in trouble now."
The cultivators who had been eyeing Su Youji and repeatedly challenging her for her treasures all began to grow restless and uneasy. However, neither Ning nor Su Youji were interested in revenge.
Although Su Youji had been driven to the brink of despair, she didn't feel any hatred for them. She knew that they were also struggling to survive. When they encountered anything that could help them or increase their chances of acquiring a full set of legacy treasures, it was only natural for them to do anything they could to win it.
As Su youji saw it, she had already escaped from this sea of bitterness, whereas all of her tormentors were still struggling. In all the hundreds of thousands of astral islands, only those twenty or so figures who had received the protection of the Astral Islands would be truly at ease.
"What? He made it up, then fell down again?"
"He actually lost that set of legacy treasures to a first stratum cultivator?"
All the cultivators kept a tight watch on their golden books, and they noticed whenever any changes appeared. They were able to almost instantly scan through the information pertaining to all of the islands, and they quickly realized that one particular island now contained a legacy treasure pertaining to the Dao of Fire.
Someone on the fifth stratum had lost to someone on the first stratum? And that person just so happened to now have a legacy of the Dao of Fire?
"He lost on purpose?"
"Damn, why don't I have friends like that?"
"Ugh."
Ning's astral island sank from the fifth stratum to the fourth stratum once more.
Kilostar, the cultivator on the fifth stratum, was a bit irritated by this. He had sent Ji Ning a challenge, but in the end Ji Ning had actually chosen to battle Su Youji instead. "He actually avoided my challenge and delivered his legacy treasure to a cultivator on the first stratum?"
"Hmph. I'll keep challenging him. Let's see if he has the balls to accept. If he does, I'll hold him in some respect."
The next day, Kilostar once more sent Ning a challenge. This time, Ning didn't decline.
Ning was now under the protection of the Astral Islands, after all. He was brimming with confidence and the desire to do battle. He wanted to see just how powerful the freaks of the fifth stratum were. Kilostar was also a cultivator, after all!
The two were both teleported to a black oceanic island. They stared at each other from afar.
Kilostar had the appearance of a skinny, swarthy-skinned child. His silver cape fluttered in the breeze, and as soon as the battle began Kilostar transformed into a thousand clones. This sight instantly caused Ning's face to tighten. "That's the [Thousand Bodies Sutra]."
"Just so. This is the [Thousand Bodies Sutra]." Kilostar's thousand clones were capable of joining together into a strange formation akin to a Thousand Elder Gods Formation. Ning was completely surrounded by Kilostar's clones, and an almighty domain-type effect began to apply to the area, filling it with Kilostar's power.
Although Ning fought back with all his power, going so far as to use his Elementum Waterflame Gourd, he wasn't able to do anything to this formation at all.
As for the thousand Kilostars, they continuously assaulted Ning. Ning's two mighty streaks of Dao lightning blasted out with wild abandon, slowing down and restricting the actions of the many Kilostars, and Ning struck out with maximum power each time. Although Kilostar was absolutely dominating Ning in this battle, Ning's six Eternal weapons gave him an utterly airtight defense.
"Your sword-arts aren't that powerful, but your defenses really are tight." Kilostar then merged with the rest of his clones into one body.
With his clones merged together, he now had a body comparable to that of a Daolord of the First Step. He was now able to use divine abilities as well!
Although Ning's azureflower mist energy enhanced his body, there was no way for him to use that mist energy to cast divine abilities.
Kilostar wielded a single scimitar in one hand, and his saber-arts were ephemeral and unpredictable. He was incredibly strong and incredibly fast, a far more frightening foe than Sabafalle.
Ning's swords were trembling with each collision, but fortunately he was able to use his six swords to defend in succession. He was being completely dominated in this fight, but every so often Ning would intentionally allow one of Kilostar's blows to land upon him, resulting in the power of his aquaflect armor playing quite a few nasty tricks on his foe.
"I have an utter ocean of divine power thanks to the [Thousand Bodies Sutra, but how is it that YOU are able to keep fighting for so long?" After fighting for an extended period of time, Kilostar was completely stunned. "Screw this, I'm done! This is just an utter waste of my divine power. My name is Kilostar. What is your name? You are indeed strong enough to reside amongst us within the fifth stratum. If nothing else, you can use your divine power to keep fighting until you exhaust and defeat some of the others on our stratum."
"My name as Darknorth." Ning smiled as well. On this day, he became friends with Kilostar.
Still, in the end Ning acknowledged defeat in this battle. Thus, he once more fell, this time from the fourth stratum to the third stratum.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 39 – Life in the Astral Islands
A year later.
There were now fifteen astral islands within the fifth stratum, all slowly circling each other. Ji Ning sat within one of the astral islands, seated atop a wooden seat and slowly sipping a cup of wine as he read through the golden book.
Whoosh.
One of the other astral islands in the fifth stratum suddenly began to drop down towards the fourth stratum.
"What a mess." Ning couldn't help but sigh softly.
Indeed. During the past year since he had been the first in his group of cultivators to make it to the fifth stratum, others such as Gorho, the Empress, and the Waterstrider had all made it to the fifth stratum as well. This made the fifth stratum much more lively than it had been in the past. Previously, all twelve of the cultivators on the fifth stratum knew each other quite well, resulting in very few challenges amongst them. Most of them would engage in training, only choosing to issue challenges once they felt as though they had made some new breakthroughs.
But the sudden addition of so many new geniuses had caused a huge disturbance. The twelve original denizens of the fifth stratum were all intrigued and excited, beginning to issue challenges to the newcomers.
One battle after another had begun to play out. With each battle, a fifth stratum expert would lose and fall down to the fourth stratum. However, that person would quickly be able to ascend to the fifth stratum once more.
Fall down, rise up.
Fall down, rise up.
Every few days, an astral island would fall down.
The fifth stratum always had at least nine astral islands within it. At most, it had a total of sixteen.
"Compared to all these other freaks and geniuses, I really am just an ordinary figure." Ning let out a sigh.
After battling many times against the others, Ning realized that the vast majority of the people within the fifth stratum were special lifeforms! Only a small number of them were cultivators! Everyone had his or her own specialty, and only Kilostar could be said to have almost no weaknesses.
Kilostar had a total of a thousand clones!
In terms of raw combat power, most likely only Ji Ning was a match for him. Once he used his thousand bodies to form that great formation, there was no one capable of injuring him at all. In terms of raw power, once his thousand bodies merged into one… he truly stood at the very top.
This was why Kilostar had never fallen from his position within the fifth stratum! As for the newcomer named Waterwalker, he was a special lifeform that similarly did not fall from the fifth stratum after reaching it. Ning had battled against him before as well. Waterwalker had a look of innocence in his eyes, almost as though he was a newborn child. He just stood there and allowed Ning to attack him as he pleased. Waterwalker himself simply transformed into an enormous globe of water, and none of Ning's attacks could harm him whatsoever.
This virtually invincible defensive technique, all by itself, was enough to let Waterwalker find stable footing here on the fifth stratum.
"Kilostar relies on his thousand clones and that formation, making it impossible for anyone to harm him. As for Waterwalker, he can transform into an enormous water drop that is equally impervious to harm. Still… Waterwalker seems to be a completely guileless man. I wonder if he really is that innocent or if it is all a façade." Ning was puzzled by this as well. Although they had only met a single time, the man had given Ning a good impression. The problem was that his innocence seemed excessive to the point of artifice. Before the duel between the two of them had started, he had repeatedly asked Ning all sorts of random questions. It was as though he was curious about everything.
Their 'fight' simply consisted of Ning attacking him and him not fighting back at all. No matter how hard Ning hit him, it was useless… and as Ning hit him, he actually continued to engage Ning in energetic conversation, continuing to ask Ning all sorts of random questions. In the end, Ning had to admit defeat.
"My body isn't any whit weaker than the bodies of those special lifeforms. My only weakness lies in my sword-arts. If only I had mastered the sixth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art! If I could do that, I would be able to easily deal with any of these other freaks on the fifth stratum." Ning pondered on this matter. If he could master the sixth stance, his sword-arts would become comparable to Kilostar's saber-arts. This was the same level which Arroyo's saber-arts had been on, and also the same level which the trials of the three Mirrorsnow Paintings were on.
The sixth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art represented a specific level of attainment. At this level, a master-class World God could use a mere Dao weapon to unleash the power of a supreme World God.
With this sword-art and the Elementum Waterflame Gourd… Ning would be able to fight Kilostar to a standstill.
Two more months went by.
Ning finally managed to acquire a full sword-art legacy, but it was the legacy ranked seventy-third. Ning had been planning to wait a few days then gift this legacy to World God Pillsaint, who he was quite fond of, but he didn't expect that during this period of time he was once more accosted by Waterwalker. Ning was unable to do any damage to him whatsoever, and the man absolutely refused to admit defeat, instead continuing to engage Ning in conversation. In the end, it was Ning who once more was formed to admit defeat.
Waterwalker had a bad habit. After he won a challenge, he would insist on taking away all of his opponent's legacy treasures. As he put it, "I really like these legacies."
There was nothing Ning could do…
He could only sigh quietly to himself. World God Pillsaint, you've been here for quite some time already. Just wait patiently for a bit longer. When I find the chance, I'll give you another set of legacy treasures.
Five more months passed before Ning was able to acquire another set of sword-arts legacy treasures. This set was the one ranked number nineteen.
Within Ning's estate-world.
This was a vast place with a towering mountain at the center of it. At the tallest peak on this mountain there was a white-robed youth who was seated in the lotus position, staring at the wide world beyond the mountain.
"I've finally mastered this stance, the 'Silent World'."
From this vantage point at the top of the mountain, his gaze was able to see to the very edges of this estate-world. Ning felt as though this entire world was under his control. In addition, he had benefited from his acquisition of those two mighty sword-arts legacies. As a result, Ning finally mastered the fifth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, the 'Silent World'.
"I've only mastered five stances. That is nothing." Ning shook his head.
In the Endless Territories, this was already an incredible achievement. World God Northrest himself had merely reached this level of sword-arts. However, Ning was now comparing himself to the terrifyingly talented geniuses which the Hegemon of the Brightshore Kingdom had selected from throughout the many territories.
"To reach the sixth stance is no easy feat. Even after gaining those two legacies… it'll take me tens of thousands of years at the very least, or perhaps as much as a few hundred thousand years." Ning shook his head and sighed.
Arroyo had made his breakthrough during the battle atop the Samsara Grinders.
The sixth stance would allow Ning to just barely fulfill the criteria necessary for overcoming Eternal Emperor Mirrorsnow's trials. To reach this level truly would be very difficult. Ning was living in the Astral Islands, had a large group of fellow geniuses to test himself against, and two mighty sword-arts legacies. This was why he might be able to succeed in 'just' a few hundred thousand years at most. This seemed like a long period of time, but Ning had the temporal acceleration treasure known as the Luminous Room. A thousand years in the real world might be enough to allow him to master this technique.
"As for these two sword-arts legacies?" Ning waved his hand, causing a thick tome to appear.
This tome was six hundred pages long. Each of its pages was a legacy treasure. Ning had to acquire all six hundred pages before being able to merge them all into this book and acquiring the sword-arts legacy within it. This was the legacy that was ranked nineteenth.
Ning flipped the book open.
Every single page had a single character on it that was filled with the aura of the Dao of the Sword.
Ning had memorized this legacy long ago. As for the six hundred characters, they represented six hundred different types of sword-intents that allowed Ning to get a better understanding of this sword-art.
"This Daolord Shipstream truly loved calligraphy. I love calligraphy as well. That's something we have in common." After acquiring this legacy, Ning had also gained some information regarding Daolord Shipstream.
Daolord Shipstream was an ancient power who had reached the Verge of the Daomerge. In the end, he had failed his Daomerge. He had perished and his Dao dissipated.
He liked to wander about and disliked combat. He titled himself Shipstream because he liked to voyage through the Endless Territories. Due to his personality, his sword-arts didn't focus on offense; instead, they were incredibly defensive!
He had left behind an extremely detailed and complete legacy, as well as those six hundred characters. Each legacy represented a specific sword-intent. Ning himself was fond of using calligraphy to symbolize his sword-intent, and so he was easily able to understand the information and insights which Daolord Shipstream had sought to transmit through these characters. Given that Ning's sword-arts were quite defensively oriented to begin with, he was indeed able to quickly understand the true essence of the sword-arts of Daolord Shipstream. A short month after gaining this legacy, Ning had mastered the fifth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art.
Two sword-arts legacies.
The first was ranked seventy-three. It seemed dazzling but it actually had clear weaknesses.
The second was ranked nineteen. It had been created by Daolord Shipstream. It seemed ordinary and unremarkable, but it was actually filled with boundless wisdom.
Afterwards, Ning continued to focus on analyzing his sword-arts. Even though Kilostar once more issued Ning a challenge, Ning made his position quite clear. "I can admit defeat, but I absolutely cannot give you this sword-art legacy. If you don't accept my terms, then I won't admit defeat and we can just keep up this battle of attrition. In all honesty, most likely the only person capable of defeating Ning in a battle of attrition was Kilostar. But of course, that was if Ning didn't use any of his chaos jewels. When Ning had left the Badlands Territory, he had converted quite a bit of his chaos nectar into chaos jewels.
None of the other cultivators could possibly beat Ning in a battle of attrition.
Kilostar walked the path of the Dao of the Saber. He really didn't care about sword-arts at all and so he didn't mind Ning's terms.
Waterwalker… Ning wasn't able to do anything to him, but he wasn't able to do anything to Ning either.
Thus, the book which had been personally authored by Daolord Shipstream remained by Ning's side. Each day, Ning would spend much of his time silently meditating on this book, and his sword-arts continued to rise in profundity, especially in defense.
Ning was so absorbed in his sword-arts that he very nearly forgot all about World God Pillsaint. As far as Ning was considered, if he could help out he would, but that was a favor and not an obligation. World God Pillsaint had been here for countless years anyhow. To be here for another ten thousand years or hundred thousand years wouldn't be that big a deal to him.
Time flowed out. In the blink of an eye, more than five hundred years had gone by in meditation and battle.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 40 – [Nameless] Sword-Art, Stance Six – Unicorn's Heart
Within the estate-world of the first Mirrorsnow Painting.
There was a towering palace here that was absolutely beautiful. A figure slowly materialized atop the royal throne at the front of the hall. It was the golden-robed emperor.
"You've come again." The golden-robed emperor stared downwards.
Ji Ning nodded from his position below the throne. "Be careful this time. If you are overconfident, you might end up being defeated by me."
"This is the first time I've heard you say such a thing." The golden-robed emperor's eyes lit up as he produced that wide golden greatsword. He rose to his feet and began to walk down the stairs from his throne. "Come, come! Don't disappoint me."
Ning produced one of his Frostice Swords as well.
Ning stood there without moving. As for the golden-robed emperor, he slowly walked down the steps. Although the two had yet to engage, their auras were beginning to surge and press against each other. Both were carefully inspecting their foe. Although the golden-robed emperor had won every match, he himself was aware that Ning was posing an increasingly great threat to him.
"Something's off." The golden-robed emperor suddenly sensed something strange. Although Ning stood a distance away from him, he gave the emperor a sensation of unpredictable fluctuation. This was something he had never sensed before in his previous battles.
"Forget him. I'll smash it all to smithereens." The golden-robed emperor's path was a Dao of righteous valor and honor. He raised his golden greatsword up high, then sent it crashing downwards towards Ning.
Boom! A terrifying aura of power blasted out as the greatsword chopped down furiously towards Ning, seeming to carry such great power that it could hack any foe to death. This terrifying aura alone was enough to freeze the hearts of many World-level cultivators.
Sniiiiick. Ning's frozen sword flashed out like a streak of azure mist as it scraped upwards towards the golden greatsword.
Although he was just using the flat of his blade to push at and scrape at the sword, this actually made things harder for the golden-robed emperor than a frontal clash would have! The strange power held within Ning's sword caused the emperor's golden greatsword to change directions, causing it to completely miss Ning.
If you couldn't hit your opponent, it didn't matter how powerful your sword-arts were.
"So his technique really has changed." The golden-robed emperor was startled.
"The [Nameless] sword-art truly is marvelous." Ning was overjoyed. Although he had just learned this sixth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, he hadn't actually employed it yet. This battle against the golden-robed emperor was his first time actually using it in battle.
This clash had resulted in him easily defeating the valiant, killing blow of the emperor. Although Ning had been able to withstand this strike in the past, it had always been incredibly taxing for him. In fact, he would stumble backwards after each block.
This time, he didn't have to use too much strength. He was able to effortlessly use a single strike to block this attack without even having to face it head-on.
"Again." The golden-robed emperor let out an angry roar. Suddenly, a golden streak of crescent sword-light appeared high in the air of the palace, then chopped down horizontally towards Ning.
Crack! Once again, Ning unleashed that seemingly casual strike in response. He sent his sword scraping against the edge of that golden crescent. As their weapons collided, the power of each person's sword-arts began to clash against each other. The golden-robed emperor's sword-art were more dominating whereas Ning's sword-art was more ephemeral and unpredictable. However, for some reason Ning was able to change the direction of the emperor's sword yet again.
The golden greatsword had been sweeping directly towards Ning, but as Ning sent his own sword scraping and pushing down upon the greatsword, the sword-light ended up slashing into the ground in front of Ning's feet. It completely missed Ning.
"How can this be? This is impossible."
The golden-robed emperor was angry now. He launched one attack after another, and each sword was filled with truly valiant and dominating power.
Each strike of Ning's seemed to be very casual and relaxed, but in truth he had focused all of his concentration into each strike. He had unleashed his sword-arts to maximum effect, and during this battle he began to gain a better and better understanding of the application of this sixth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art. He began to better understand how to actually use it in battle, and as this battle proceeded Ning began to relax.
Snick! Snick! Clank!
Sword-light clashed over and over.
It was very strange. Generally speaking, when two experts battled their weapons would produce sonorous explosions, as though the heavens were about to collapse. However, whenever Ning's sword collided with his opponent's sword, it merely produced a very gentle sound. It was as though Ning was using a brush to write words on parchment. He seemed quite relaxed and at ease.
Snick!
Ning's fluctuating sword-light once more scraped against the golden sword-light. This time, it scraped straight past it and stabbed straight into the golden-robed emperor's throat.
The sword went straight through the emperor's throat. Everything went still.
The golden-robed emperor came to a halt, and Ning withdrew his Frostice Sword.
"You've won." The golden-robed emperor had a strange smile on his face. "Your sword-arts have been improving for years now. I knew that sooner or later, you would be able to defeat me. Still, even I didn't expect that it would happen this quickly. Can you tell me what your sword-art is named?"
"This is a sword-art created by a major power. This the sixth stance, and its name is the 'Unicorn's Heart'," Ning said.
"The Unicorn's Heart?" The golden-robed emperor nodded slowly. "Your sword truly is ephemeral and unpredictable. It makes things quite uncomfortable for your foe."
"Senior, your sword-art is honorable, direct, and dominating. I had to fight for very long before I was able to win through one fortunate strike," Ning said. In truth, when he had first started fighting he hadn't been very familiar with the Unicorn's Heart. Naturally, it was very hard for him to win. However, as he slowly began to grow increasingly familiar with this technique, he had improved to the point of being able to stab through the emperor's throat with one blow.
The [Nameless] sword-art was very interesting.
The first stance was the Heartsword stance. It required the wielder possess absolute control over his his sword, allowing his heart to be in control of the sword and the world around it.
The second stance was the Killsword stance. It was an utterly dominating and powerful stance.
The third stance was the Great Firmament stance. It allowed the user to create a world unto itself. In truth, this was the upgrade version of the Heartsword stance. It perfected the technique, giving it even more perfect defensive powers and making its attacks even tighter.
The fourth stance was the Horizon's Edge stance. It could be described with one word – fast!
The fifth stance was the Silent World stance. It could be described with one word – savage! The fourth stance and fifth stance were both attacking stances that were meant to be used against different types of foes. Some foes could only be dispatched with speed, others required dominating and savage sword-arts.
The sixth stance was the Unicorn's Heart stance. This represented an evolutionary transformation of the Great Firmament stance. It was much brighter than the Heartsword stance; the Heartsword stance only gave absolute control over the sword, whereas the Unicorn's Heart was able to produce all sorts of marvelous effects.
It could easily block, deflect, and redirect attacks. It could also kill foes!
This sword-art was ephemeral, unpredictable, and incredibly abstruse. It was extremely hard to comprehend. Fortunately, Daolord Shipstream's legacy and the book he had left behind were highly focused on defense. Once a defensive technique reached the later stages, it would also gain something akin to the flavor of the Unicorn's Heart. After all, truly powerful sword-arts all had things in common.
Thus, after five hundred years Ning was able to master this sixth stance.
"The first stance, Heartsword stance. The third stance, Great Firmament stance. The sixth stance, the Unicorn's Heart stance. All of them are highly defensive techniques that can also be used to slay my foes." Ning knew quite clearly that these three stances were fundamentally the same. All of them focused on tightly controlled sword-arts that sought out flaws to use for sure-fire kills.
The Killsword stance, Horizon's Edge stance, and Silent World stance were stances that were completely focused on attacking while holding nothing back.
"You have defeated me and passed my trial. However, you must defeat the other three as well," the golden-robed emperor said. "Only then shall you gain the legacy of the Eternal Emperor and become his personal disciple! Emperor Mirrorsnow's sword-arts were some of the most terrifying sword-arts of all the Endless Territories. If you become his disciple, your future prospects shall be limitless."
"Understood." Ning nodded.
Ning currently had a total of three Mirrorsnow Paintings. The first held the golden-robed emperor, the second held the assassin, and the third held the fisherman.
The assassin's sword was a bizarre sword that was focused on murder and death. In a world of darkness, the assassin would suddenly appear and disappear out of nowhere, his sword-light flashing as he stabbed at Ning.
Ning would be forced to stand there, Frostice Sword in hand, blocking each and every strike from the assassin. The assassin's sword-arts were on the exact same level as the golden-robed emperor'r sword-arts, but they had completely different styles. They provided different insights to Ning, allowing Ning to gain many new insights into the Unicorn's Heart. At first, he still found himself unaccustomed to dealing with the assassin's fighting style. However, he slowly became accustomed to it and found it increasingly easy to deal with.
Snick! Swish!
Sword-light flashed as it stabbed straight through the assassin's throat.
The assassin was incredibly slender. His face was covered with scales, and his eyes glowed with green light. This was the first time Ning had caught a clear glimpse of the assassin's face.
"You won. Defeat the other three and you shall receive the Eternal Emperor's legacy." The assassin spoke in a hoarse voice, then disappeared once more.
The estate-world within the third painting. This was the world of the fisherman.
The two clashed for quite some time. The fisherman no longer seemed as relaxed and carefree as he had been in previous battles. This time, he fought with full intensity and deadly seriousness. Ning's expressions were similarly solemn, and the two battled for more than two hours. This high-intensity battle gradually began to wear both of them down.
It must be understood that Ning's battles against the other two had lasted for less than one hour.
"The fisherman's sword is unpredictable and fluctuating, and he uses that fishing pole of his to fight me. That pole is sometimes rigid but sometimes flexible, whereas my sword is incredibly sharp and resilient… and yet, I'm still unable to breach his defenses." Ning was beginning to understand.
The fisherman's sword was quite similar to his own Unicorn's Heart. Both were unpredictable, fluctuating sword-arts that sought out a chance to deliver a single lethal strike.
By comparison, the fisherman's sword had a 'softer' defense, but once he reached an opponent who was a match for him the fisherman unleashed virtually all of the potential within his sword-arts, resulting in Ning being completely unable to harm him.
Finally, the two came to a halt.
"Your sword-art is incredibly profound and mysterious. It truly is one of the most profound sword-arts of all the Endless Territories. However, my own sword-arts were passed down by the Eternal Emperor himself. If you wish to defeat me, you'll need to improve a little bit more." The fisherman calmly walked back to his pool and began to fish again. "You can leave now."
Ning wasn't disappointed. Instead, his heart was filled with joy. This battle with the fisherman had resulted in him improving dramatically in his Unicorn's Heart.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 41 – The Coming of Bertulu
After mastering the sixth stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, 'Unicorn's Heart', Ji Ning spent another year before he was able to develop the third stance of his [Quintessence Sword-Intent, the 'Astral' stance.
Blackmist stance, Allgod stance, Astral stance. These three stances were named after three places or people that had a huge effect on him.
The Unicorn's Heart and the Astral stance were sword-arts on the same general level of power. However, when Ning used Violetjewel to executed the Astral stance he was able to unleash several times more power.
After his sword-arts improved, Ning became capable of standing firmly within the fifth stratum. Even Kilostar was merely on par with Ning.
In truth, when Kilostar used his full power he was clearly on a higher level of power than Ning. Unfortunately, Ning had the Elementum Waterflame Gourd and six sets of Violetjewel. It was hard for the other geniuses to compete against him in terms of wealth and treasures.
"You have six damn swords, whereas I just have a pair of warblades… and you, you sly bastard, keep on releasing lightning to attack me as well!" Kilostar was frustrated by his battles against Ning as well. He had to go all-out in each fight, but he was still only able to fight to a standstill. "Screw this, I'm done! I'm not going to accept any more challenges from you. Go ahead and admit defeat! I'd rather die than admit defeat in this battle."
Kilostar immediately transformed into a thousand clones again and entered his formation. He absolutely refused to admit defeat, and this great formation ensured that there really was no way anyone could do anything to him.
Ning was in quite a good mood, and so he voluntarily admitted defeat.
Thirty-two years after learning the Unicorn's Heart, Ning finally managed to piece together the footwork legacy he wanted.
"I finally have it." Ning stared at the jade tome in his hands. The footwork legacy consisted of a series of jade slips, and there were a total of eight hundred slips. After acquiring all eight hundred, they came together to form a jade tome that radiated several large characters: "Swear the oath and you can view my true teachings." There were a few other smaller characters hovering nearby those larger characters as well.
Ning reviewed the restrictive spells pertaining to the jade tome, then immediately swore the oath. A large amount of information then began to transmit into Ning's mind.
Moments later, a series of tightly clustered characters began to emanate out of the jade tome, bringing with them an aura of marvelous and profundity.
"Footwork technique. What does this phrase means? It simply refers to a technique meant for movement! Unless there is a tremendous gap in power, a powerful footwork technique is far more effective than offensive or defensive techniques. This is true for both mortals as well as Eternal Emperors!
"If I am always a step ahead of you, your sword shall never touch me. Even if I can only dodge it by one centimeter, I'll have rendered your sword-arts useless against me, no matter how powerful they are.
"If my footwork techniques are powerful, I'll be able to strike my foes without him being able to strike me. All shall be under my control."
Ning read these words, then slowly nodded. He understood the importance of a good footwork technique. When he was young and living in Swallow Mountain, his mother Yuchi Snow had personally taught him his first footwork techniques. Ning had never abandoned his progression in this area, and had always infused his insights into the Dao into his footwork techniques. He had even purchased a pair of Thunderlight Wings! His footwork abilities were actually quite excellent compared to his World-level peers. He actually wasn't lacking in this area.
"All good footwork techniques share certain commonalities. They allow you to instantly explode with speed, allowing you to dodge attacks as best you can. Two people might have the same level of divine power and the same insights into the Dao, but the one who has superior footwork techniques will be able to dodge faster. A good footwork technique can make a tremendous difference.
"This footwork technique of mine involves the cycling of divine power that can be divided up into three layers of expertise. The first level is most likely comparable to that of the footwork techniques most cultivators use, allowing them to dodge and move at high speed. The second allows for nearly instantaneous dodging that is at a far faster level. As for the third level…"
As Ning read on, he couldn't help but laugh awkwardly.
The cycling of divine power?
His greatest source of power came from his azureflower mist energy. No matter how strong his divine power became, it couldn't possibly compare to that mist energy! Although this technique's unique methods of cycling divine power had been transmitted into Ning's mind, it truly was of no use to him.
Still, Ning read on.
"The power you can unleash from your footwork depends on two things. The first is the way in which you cycle your divine power. The second is the skill with which you execute the techniques.
"Those who have a high level of skill are able to easily surpass those at a lower level of skill, even if they don't use any divine abilities.
"My footwork technique has a special history to it. Long ago, when I was paying my respects to the almighty Hegemon of the Brightshore Kingdom, I saw a lightning dragon. This lightning dragon was actually a streak of lightning which the almighty Hegemon had created that was capable of gaining eternity. When I saw how this 'Eternal Thunderdragon' moved about, I meditated for many years before coming up with this technique, the Thunderdragon footwork technique. It can be divided up into five different levels.
"The first level is the level known as 'control'. Anyone who studies this footwork technique of mine can master this level.
"The second level is the level known as 'infusion'. You shall infuse all of your insights into the Dao into this footwork technique. If you are skilled in the Dao of Spacetime, you should infuse those insights into your footwork. If you are skilled in the Dao of the Saber, then you can do the same. Only once you truly and completely merge your deepest insights into the Dao into my Thunderdragon footwork technique shall you have mastered my 'infusion' level.
"The third level is the level known as 'draconify'. When you use this footwork technique, an illusion of a lightning dragon shall protect your body, allowing your speed to increase dramatically. At this level, you shall have begin to grasp the true essence of this technique.
"The fourth level is the level known as 'thunderdragon'. This footwork technique can be used to control a type of lightning which is on the same level as other types of Dao lightning. Once you reach the fourth level, the lightning you control can become one with your body. You shall be the lightning and the lightning shall be you. You'll be able to move as fast as Dao lightning. Even I myself have only ever reached this fourth level.
"The fifth level is the level known as the 'Eternal Thunderdragon'. After I created this technique, the almighty Hegemon looked it over and added a few improvements to two parts of it, then informed me that once this technique reached the apex one would be able to manifest a streak of Eternal lightning, then become one with it. I have spent dozens of chaos cycles painstakingly meditating on this technique as a Verge-level Daolord, but I'm still unable to make any improvements. I can't even imagine what sort of level this 'apex' which the almighty Hegemon spoke of is at, but I've taken the liberty of describing it as the fifth level."
Ning couldn't help but sigh in amazement as he read this. This footwork technique was far too powerful.
The rest of the jade tome just included a few diagrams. There were a total of eighteen images of thunder dragons. As for the detailed information regarding the footwork technique as well as the divine power cycling method, all of that had been directly transmitted into Ning's mind.
"The divine power cycling method is useless to me, but this footwork technique itself is incredibly powerful once one reaches the apex of it." Ning knew exactly what the phrase Eternal lightning entailed.
Chaos lightning belonged to the World level of power, which was why it could easily breach the limits of the Heavenly Daos. Chaos lightning flew incredibly fast, roughly ten times faster than the speed of light. Generally speaking, even most Daolords were unable to move that fast.
Dao lightning belonged to the Samsara level of power. Some Dao lightning was born from the endless primordial chaos, but some had been created by Daolords! In the Three Realms, Zhurong had created his own Zhurong Godfire while Suiren had created his Eternal Kindlefire. Samsara Daolords were similarly capable of creating their own incredibly powerful types of Dao lightning. Dao lightning flew incredibly fast, far faster than Chaos lightning. Generally speaking, they were able to move a hundred times faster than the speed of light.
As for Eternal lightning… this level of lightning was something out of the legends. Ning had never heard of any type of Eternal lightning emerging naturally from the primordial chaos. Perhaps it existed, perhaps it did not. Only Eternal Emperors could hope to create Eternal lightning, and that only if they had reached incredibly profound levels of insight into the Dao of Lightning.
As for how fast Eternal lightning moved? Ning had no idea as he had never seen it before.
"When one reaches the apex of this footwork technique, one will be able to manifest a type of Eternal lightning, then merge with it?" Ning was speechless. How fast would such a person become?!
"Still, even the creator of this footwork technique was only able to reach the fourth level. This, despite the fact that he was so talented that he was able to develop it after merely seeing the Hegemon's own Eternal lightning. Most likely, the only reason why this footwork has a so-called 'fifth level' is because of the two alterations which the almighty Hegemon made to it." Ning instantly realized that the fifth level was most likely something illusory and untouchable, like the reflection of the moon in the waters of a lake. If even a Verge-level Daolord spent dozens of chaos cycles without being able to master it, who could?!
"My ambitions aren't that high. I'll be happy just reaching the third level." Ning was still feeling quite excited.
At the third level, he would gain the protection of an illusory thunder dragon that would allow him to move with incredible speed.
Life for Ning in the Astral Islands was quite blissful. He had memorized two valuable sword-art legacies that he could train in, which included very detailed instructions on their use. He had also memorized an incredibly powerful footwork technique, one that was far superior to any other technique which Ning had ever seen. This, too, was available for Ning to train in as he pleased.
As for experts on his same general level? There were dozens of freakishly talented geniuses for him to duel against.
Time passed on, one day after another. The battles between the fifth stratum cultivators became rarer and rarer, as by now everyone had already fought everyone else. Some of them had battled each person multiple times by now. Even Kilostar and Waterwalker had dueled each other. But of course, the end result was that Waterwalker had been defeated. Kilostar maintained his undefeated streak within the fifth stratum.
Time flowed on, and in the blink of an eye Ning had spent a thousand years here at the Astral Islands.
The sixth stratum still had just a single astral island hovering within it. This was the residence of Bertulu, and he had issued no challenges. No one was qualified to truly challenge him.
Within this astral island there was a white-haired youth dressed in loose white robes who was seated in the lotus position on the ground. Suddenly, his eyes opened up. He had a gentle, warm gaze, but they seemed to hold the light of countless stars within them. He murmured softly to himself, "A thousand years have gone past. The new cultivators have experienced a thousand years of tempering and growth. I imagine they should have reached a bottleneck in power by now. It is time for me to challenge them a bit. Mm… I shall start with Kilostar."
Soon, something happened that stunned all of the cultivators of the hundreds of thousands of astral islands.
Kilostar, who had never fallen from the fifth stratum after entering it, had actually fallen down to the fourth stratum. All of his legacy treasures had been seized by the sixth stratum.
Everyone knew that the sixth stratum cultivator, Bertulu, had just struck out and defeated Kilostar!
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 42 – Predeparture Preparations
"Hurry up! Bring out all your best wine." Kilostar and Bertulu were seated facing to each other on an oceanic island, a stone table in front of them.
On one side was the skinny and swarthy Kilostar, dressed in that silver cape of his. On the other side was a white-robed, white-haired youth. The two had completely different looks and auras as well. Kilostar's aura was rather valiant and explosive, whereas Bertulu's aura was much warmer and more radiant. He was like the warmth of the sun, bringing comfort and friendliness to all who saw him.
"That's more like it." Kilostar grabbed the gourd of wine that had appeared on the stone table, lifted it up high, then began to guzzle it all down.
"Alright, alright. There's no need for you to be this angry, Kilostar." Bertulu let out a laugh.
"You insidious, sly, hypocritical wolf in cultivator's clothing!" Kilostar glared ferociously at Bertulu. Even his third eye within his forehead was bulging with rage. "I have NEVER fallen down from the fifth stratum. It was all because of you! You deceitful bastard, I lost because of your tricks! That was bullshit! Bullshit! BULLSHIT!"
Bertulu chortled. "You lost, alright? Even if I did pull a few tricks, the end result was that you lost. In battle, the only thing that matters is the result. The process isn't really important."
"I trusted you! That's the only reason you were able to trick me!" Kilostar was furious.
Actually, this wasn't his first time being defeated by Bertulu. In the past, he had won ten battles in a row and was qualified to charge Bertulu for residence within the sixth stratum. However, Bertulu had swiftly dispatched him and sent him right back down to the fifth stratum. Over the course of many years, the twelve in the fifth stratum had tried numerous times to make it into the sixth stratum, but each time they were quickly knocked down by Bertulu once more. The only person who could stably reside within the sixth stratum was Bertulu himself.
"If I had used my formation and focused completely on defense, there's no way you could've beaten me," Kilostar said angrily.
He was pissed off just thinking about it. He had never been knocked out of the fifth stratum before. He had wanted to keep his perfect record, leaving behind the legend of Kilostar once he departed from these Astral Islands. To be honest, Kilostar had been planning on leaving for some time now… but who would've thought that his golden record would be broken just before his departure? Now, he was back in the fourth stratum. Of course he was irritated by this!
"I trusted you! I considered you my friend! But you-" Kilostar truly was quite disgruntled.
"Enough, enough already. It was my bad, alright? But you know, everything is fair game in a battle." Bertulu chortled again. "Oh, right. How strong are the newbies?"
"The newbies have improved significantly. Six of them made it to the fifth stratum," Kilostar said.
That very first year after Ning's arrival, four members of his 'class' had made it into the fifth stratum. After a thousand years, two more had joined them.
"As far as how strong they are…" Kilostar paused, weighing his words. "In terms of attack power, the Empress and Darknorth are on par with me. The others including Gorho, Daoist Fish, Fairy Brightheart, and Waterwalker are slightly weaker."
"Oh?" Bertulu was quite intrigued.
"In terms of defensive prowess, Waterwalker is the strongest freak of all. He probably has some sort of special innate ability that makes him virtually unkillable. Next would be Fairy Brightheart, with Darknorth being third. The Empress, Gorho, and Daoist Fish are ranked below them."
Kilostar continued, "As for endurance, Darknorth is the strongest. After him is Fairy Brightheart, Waterwalker, the Empress, then the rest."
Kilostar nodded. "That would be how I would rank them. They each have their own specialties." Kilostar smiled. "As for the more detailed information… go try them out yourself."
Bertulu was intrigued. "From what you are saying, it sounds as though this Darknorth fellow is quite strong?"
"Him? He's just as much of a bastard as you are." Kilostar said in a disgruntled manner, "At first, his sword-arts were fairly weak and I was able to crush him with just one warblade. Over the course of the past thousand years, his footwork techniques and his sword-arts both improved dramatically. But the disgusting thing is, he not only has an Elementum Waterflame Gourd, he also has six damn Eternal weapons that are absolutely identical to each other."
Kilostar shook his head. "You tell me, doesn't that just piss you off? Although I, Kilostar, have acquired multiple Eternal weapons as well, the only ones that suit me are those two warblades. He actually has SIX of those Eternal swords, and they are absolutely identical!" Kilostar said furiously, "It's like a six on two fight! And that Elementum Waterflame Gourd continuously releases lightning against me as well…"
Bertulu was surprised. "It sounds as though this Darknorth has quite a few treasures."
"He has a ridiculous amount of treasures! It's damn near impossible to get six identical Eternal weapons, and that Elementum Waterflame Gourd has to be worth at least half a million cubes of chaos nectar as well. All combined, that stuff has to be worth more than a million cubes!" Kilostar grumbled unhappily, "If all he had was two swords and if he didn't have that lightning helping him, I'd still be able to crush him."
"Oh…" Bertulu nodded upon hearing this.
"Have an idea of what you are going to do?" Kilostar looked at him.
"A few ideas." Bertulu nodded. "I wanted to first challenge all of the old timers, then sweep through the six newbies. After that, I'll be leaving."
"You are going to be leaving the Astral Islands?" Kilostar was briefly stunned, but he then nodded slightly.
"It is time. The reason why I've been staying for the past few years was because I wanted to wait for this newest batch of 'recruits' to have a chance to grow up," Bertulu explained. "The almighty Hegemon generally only goes out to personally abduct people roughly once every chaos cycle. I certainly can't afford to wait that long for the next crop."
"You bastard, you can break through to become a Daolord whenever you want." Kilostar shook his head and sighed. "I, unfortunately, have only gained a vague glimpse of what my path is to be. I haven't truly understand it yet."
Only by truly discovering one's own path and discovering one's own Dao would one be able to rely on that Dao to become a Samsara Daolord.
Bertulu had discovered his path and his Dao long ago. He was able to become a Samsara Daolord whenever he wished it. However, Brightshore Kingdom was a very safe place and he was simply in no rush to make his breakthrough. Once he made that choice, there would be no going back. He naturally wanted to make sure everything was perfect first.
"You will benefit greatly from your time in the Twelve Palaces," Bertulu said. "Although the Astral Islands have ninety-nine legacies, only the top ten legacies can be considered decent. Strictly speaking, none of these legacies can be considered 'core' legacies of the Twelve Palaces."
"Mm." Kilostar understood this point as well.
Kilostar lost his battle. His astral island sank from the fifth stratum to the fourth stratum.
After that, Bertulu began an absolute 'massacre'. He challenged one fifth stratum expert after another, but none of the challenged experts were afraid of him. Bertulu was a person who they normally wouldn't have a chance to fight. All of them were filled with a towering desire to do battle as they went forth to face Bertulu.
And the end result was…
Every single astral island was smacked down to the fourth stratum.
Originally, the fifth stratum had sixteen islands. It shrank down to fifteen… fourteen… thirteen… twelve…
More and more islands began to fall.
"Yet another island has fallen." Ning stood at the edges of his own astral island, staring off into the distance as another astral island that had been within his stratum began to sink downwards.
"Mm. My sword-arts have reached a bottleneck, as have my footwork techniques. It'll be difficult for me to improve any further here in the Astral Islands. Although there are many freaks here for me to fight against, it is still time to leave soon," Ning mused.
It was time to leave the Astral Islands. Yes, the environment here was nice, and it was possible that over the course of countless years sparring against these monsters he might gain some insights that would allow him to master the seventh stance of the [Nameless] sword-art, but…
That would almost assuredly be something that happened a very, very long time from now. It had taken him nearly five hundred years to master the sixth stance, and if you factored in the temporal acceleration it had actually taken tens of thousands of years. As for the seventh stance, Ning was completely mystified by it. He knew that mastering it would be an incredibly difficult prospect, and it would most likely take him perhaps a thousand times more time and effort.
"I'm under the effects of a lifeblood oath to reach Vastheaven Palace within a chaos cycle. Only then will I be able to return to the Three Realms to bring back my parents. Although a chaos cycle is an extremely long period of time, who knows what new variables might be introduced in the future? I can't waste too much time here."
Ning nodded to himself. To have spent a thousand years here in the Astral Islands was enough.
"I should give this footwork legacy to World God Pillsaint." Ning picked up his golden book, then sent World God Pillsaint a challenge. He was going to leave and he wouldn't be able to take this jade tome with him. He might as well give it to Pillsaint instead. The first person Ning had met here in the Astral Islands had been Pillsaint, and he had quite a good impression of the man.
"A challenge?" The rosy-lipped, white-teethed, chubby-faced youth, World God Pillsaint, looked at his book. His eyes lit up. "It is Darknorth."
Ning and Pillsaint were on very good terms with each other.
For example, when Ning didn't wish to battle against a particular foe, but that person insisted on challenging him, Ning would often send World God Pillsaint a challenge and use that duel to avoid the first one.
"Is Darknorth trying to avoid another challenge?" Pillsaint was puzzled. Still, he entered the room filled with divine runes and allowed himself to be teleported directly to the battlegrounds.
This was an icy cold oceanic island that was completely locked in by icebergs. A cold wind howled through this world.
As soon as Pillsaint appeared, he immediately saw the white-robed youth who was carrying that sword on his back.
"Darknorth," Pillsaint immediately called out to him.
"Pillsaint." Ning looked at him. "I'm going to be leaving."
"Leaving?" Pillsaint was stunned. "So soon?"
"Yes." Ning nodded.
"That's crazy fast. We cultivators live extremely long lives. Why rush things like this? Generally speaking, most of those other freakishly talented geniuses will spend ten million years or a hundred million years here before leaving," Pillsaint said.
Ning laughed. If he stayed here for ten million years, he probably would indeed be able to master the seventh stance of the [Nameless] sword-art. Ten million years out of an entire chaos cycle? That really was nothing. Still, Ning wanted to save as much time as he could, for fear of something else from happening.
"Time for me to leave. This time, I admit defeat." Ning spoke out in a high-pitched voice.
"Admit… defeat?" Pillsaint was stunned. Ning had never admitted defeat in any of his battles before. He knew that that Ning had a footwork legacy in his hands. Was Ning planning to transfer this legacy to him?
"I won't be able to take this footwork legacy away with me. Take it." Ning tossed the jade tome over to him.
Pillsaint couldn't control himself. He immediately extended his arms to accept the jade tome, gripping it with his fingers. His eyes couldn't help but turn red. He had been trapped here in the Astral Islands for an extremely long period of time. He desperately wanted to find a way to leave, but acquiring a full legacy truly was not easy. Whenever he had enough parts of a legacy, he would suffer countless challenges from cultivators on the third and fourth strata. Each time he got close, he would lose it all!
"Darknorth." Pillsaint's eyes turned red.
"I'm embarrassed to say this, but I was actually planning to give you a sword-art legacy I acquired quite some time ago. Unfortunately, Waterwalker managed to force it out of me." Ning shook his head.
"Darknorth, I'm endlessly grateful that you are willing to help me out. You've been here for less than a thousand years, right? It hasn't been a long time at all." Pillsaint was quite moved. With this legacy, he would regain his freedom.
"Alright. Once I leave, I'll be joining the Palace of the Sword of the Twelve Palaces," Ning said. "If you wish to meet me, go to the Sword Palace and seek me out."
"I will." World God Pillsaint nodded vigorously.
"And now… the only thing that remains is my battle against Bertulu." Ning had a distant look in his eyes. The last thing he wanted to do before leaving this place was to have a battle against Bertulu.
Bertulu, the undisputed number one expert of the hundreds of thousands of astral islands. Ever since he had made it to the sixth stratum, he had never fallen down from it.
Ning had battled against all the other talented geniuses. He had never, however, battled Bertulu.
"I really look forward to it." Ning could feel his blood boiling with eagerness just thinking about this battle.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 43 – The Hegemon
Ji Ning was looking forward to battling Bertulu. After fighting with him, he could leave the Astral Islands with no regrets. However, he had to wait for Bertulu to finish challenging the old timers first.
The number of astral islands in the fifth stratum continued to decreased. Eight. Seven. Six. Five.
Only five were left! These were the five newcomers.
"I lost." The handsome, devilish-looking silver-haired youth stared at the white-robed, white-haired youth in the distance. Both had extraordinary auras. The former had a more devilish aura while the latter had an aura of warmth and calm.
"Gorho, it seems as though you have already found your own path to becoming a Samsara Daolord." Bertulu smiled as he spoke.
"Yes." It was very rare for Gorho to feel admiration towards someone else. Although Darknorth and Kilostar had defeated him, he didn't really care too much. This was because he could tell that Kilostar had mainly succeeded due to having a thousand clones, while Darknorth had a body just as tough as Kilostar's and most likely had a similar technique he relied on. In terms of actual insights into the Dao, neither Darknorth nor Kilostar were up to his level.
However, Bertulu gave Gorho a sense of tremendous pressure! This was the first time he had encountered someone who completely outclassed him in terms of enlightenment and insights.
"What path do you plan to walk?" Bertulu asked with curiosity.
"If I have the chance, I will walk the path of spacetime," Gorho said.
"Spacetime? Isn't your strongest Dao the Dao of Fire?" Bertulu was puzzled. From the battle they had just engaged in, he was able to tell that Gorho had reached incredible heights in the Dao of Fire. In fact, he had reached the level of being able to use it to become a Samsara Daolord whenever he wished.
"I like it, I guess." This was Gorho's response, but in his heart he mused to himself…
My true talent actually lies in spacetime. My strongest Dao isn't necessarily my best Dao.
He was the most powerful descendant of an almighty Aeonian, King Gorsch. He naturally was extremely skilled in the Dao of Fire… but he was even more skilled in spacetime! However, he was personally trained in the mysteries of fire by King Gorsch, whereas he had to study the art of spacetime by himself. This was why his Dao of Fire was slightly superior to his Dao of Spacetime.
However, by comparison he had to put twice as much effort into his Dao of Fire, only to get half the results. Prior to him being abducted, his father King Gorsch had told Gorho that he was planning to help Gorho find a master who was skilled in the Dao of Spacetime to teach him.
"But how could any major power possibly be a match for the almighty Hegemon of the Brightshore Kingdom?" After years of painstaking work, Gorho had finally managed to acquire a complete spacetime legacy roughly two years ago. "According to the notes on that legacy, if I reach a high enough level of skill I will be able to receive personal guidance from the Hegemon himself."
"Once I become a Daolord and Awaken my bloodline, I'll become even more powerful. By then, not even Bertulu would necessarily be a match for me." Gorho's heart was filled with tremendous pride and self-confidence.
Prior to their Awakening, Aeonians were quite similar to cultivators. After being Awakened, however, they would explode with power and would view other Samsara Daolords as prey for them to feed out. They truly were terrifyingly powerful.
Yet another astral island descended from the fifth stratum. Now, only four remained.
"My techniques were completely ineffective against you." The special lifeform known as Daoist Fish let out a sigh. His face was covered with fish scales and his eyes gleamed with golden light.
"You have too many techniques. You need to focus a bit more." Bertulu was gleaming with light, as dazzling as any sun. Slowly, he began to retract his aura of radiance.
"I know that, but… I can't help it. I like them all." Daoist Fish let out a sigh. "Ugh. I can play around with any of those individuals on the third and fourth strata as I please, but each time I fight someone else on the fifth level I'm beaten."
Daoist Fish was one of the last to join the fifth stratum, and he was the only one who was in the fourth stratum at the time of this challenge.
"How can this be?" This was a bald woman who was dazzlingly beautiful but who had a demeanor as cold as ice. Right now, a look of absolute shock was on her face. "How could you have…"
"Fairy Brightheart, your defensive techniques are indeed quite formidable, and I am filled with admiration towards you. But that heart of yours… it really is a major weakness. Any World-level Heartforce Cultivator would be able to easily defeat you, to say nothing of me." Bertulu let out a soft sigh.
Fairy Brightheart's face turned slightly pale.
Deep within her innermost heart there lay a nightmare that she had never been able to forget. However, it was also thanks to this nightmare that she had been able to persevere and reach her current heights in cultivation.
"I understand." Fairy Brightheart nodded slowly.
The four islands became three islands.
"Fighting with you was a wonderful experience. You forced me to go all out." Bertulu looked at the jade-haired woman before him. This was the Empress.
Empress was dressed in semi-translucent gauze and looked quite bewitching. She let out a soft laugh. "Bertulu, everyone knows that although you are skilled in the Dao of Light, you are even more skilled in heartforce. Just now, you didn't use your heartforce at all. You were able to defeat me merely through employing your Dao of Light."
"In close combat abilities, at least, I was forced to use my full power," Bertulu said. "Your are extremely talented. However, you are a bit lacking in terms of your insights into the Dao. If you were to reach a higher level in this regard, perhaps to Gorho's level, then I would be forced to use my heartforce techniques in order to defeat you."
The three islands became two islands.
"How incredibly powerful." Waterwalker stared at Bertulu, his eyes filled with shock and awe. "I fell asleep before we even started our fight?"
"You should've been born just a short while ago, right?" Bertulu looked at Waterwalker.
"Yes. The almighty Hegemon captured me just moments after I woke up." Waterwalker nodded.
"Your innate abilities are amongst the most supreme abilities any race of special lifeforms possess. Most likely, even the Empress is a bit inferior to you in this regard. Your innate abilities are so strong that I imagine you are close to being on par with even the legendary Ancient cultivators or the Brightshore Imperials." Bertulu continued, "By relying on your innate abilities, you can ensure that the other geniuses here are completely unable to injure you. That alone ensures that you can defeat cultivators on the fourth and fifth strata."
"However… the problem with you is that you simply haven't been alive for long enough. Spend some extra time here in the Astral Islands. I recommend you spend a chaos cycle here, then spend another chaos cycle wandering the Brightshore Kingdom," Bertulu said. "Only then should you join the Twelve Palaces."
"Although I don't really understand why I have to stay here that long, I can sense that you have nothing but the best of intentions in mind for me." Waterwalker looked at Bertulu. "From this day forth, you are one of my friends."
"Haha, good!" Bertulu nodded.
When he looked at Waterwalker, he felt as though he was looking at himself all those years ago. The only difference was that Waterwalker had been abducted shortly after being born, whereas Bertulu himself had wandered the primordial chaos for countless years and had experienced many, many things. He had experienced both grief and joy, gatherings and partings. All of these things had come together to allow him to walk the path of heartforce.
The two islands became one.
Only a single astral island was now left within the fifth stratum. Ji Ning's astral island.
"Am I the last one?" The white-robed Ning was seated in the lotus position atop a grassy area within his astral island, Violetjewel resting across his knees. He had been waiting here for quite some time now, but Bertulu had unexpectedly chosen to save him for last.
"Here it comes." Ning's gaze turned towards the golden book next to him.
A challenge had finally appeared within his golden book, a challenge that came from the sixth stratum. This was a challenge Ning had never received before.
"I've spent a thousand years in the Astral Islands waiting for this battle." Ning sent out a strand of his will, shattering the message of challenge. Challenge accepted!
"Wow."
"That guy in the sixth stratum is truly invincible."
"He's way too powerful."
All the islands of the Astral Islands had been in a state of breathless excitement for the past fifteen days. They had watched as one island after another descended from the fifth stratum. Every single person within the fifth stratum was a freak of a genius, no matter what path they walked or what Dao they were skilled yet. And yet, Bertulu had crushed and defeated all of them!
Only a single island remained within the fifth stratum. Once this island was also defeated, there would be no islands in the fifth stratum at all.
At this moment in time, all of the hundreds of thousands of cultivators present here were completely focused on what was going to happen. They were awaiting the final resolution to this momentous event.
At the very bottom of the dark abyss below the Astral Islands.
At this moment there were more than ten figures gathered here, including that of the muscular man with tousled black hair who was dressed in simple combat garbs. Their auras were as profound as that of the endless sea of stars.
"Bertulu truly is formidable in heartforce."
"This should be his final battle in the Astral Islands."
"After he finishes sweeping through all his opponents, he will probably leave."
"He still has yet to tell us if he will be joining the Palace of Radiance or the Palace of Heartforce."
These ancient powers were all chatting amongst themselves. All of them had been keeping an eye on Bertulu for quite some time now. In fact, even the almighty Hegemon had been paying attention to him.
The path of cultivation had three main branches; Fiendgod Body Refining, Ki Refining, and Heartforce Cultivating. Ji Ning was a dual refiner who trained both as a Fiendgod and as a Ki Refiner! However, it was actually possible to be a triple refiner who trained in heartforce as well! Bertulu was one such cultivator, and people like him were the most terrifying opponents one could face. If Bertulu could use his heartforce to even slightly affect his opponent, he would then be able to easily dominate that person through his terrifying close combat skills. In fact, there were many who Bertulu could defeat without even having to lift a finger!
"Oh, just one battle is left?" A voice rang out.
A white-bearded elder dressed in snowy robes who had six curved horns on his head suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
The ten-plus ancient powers gathered here were all shocked. They hastily bowed with respect. "Hegemon!"
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
Book 26, World Level, Chapter 44 – Ji Ning Battles Bertulu
The almighty Hegemon, the most exalted figure in all the Brightshore Kingdom.
Because of him, the Brightshore Kingdom sprang into existence. Because of him, there existed the Brightshore Imperials and the Twelve Palaces of Brightshore. Because of him, the kingdom was qualified to stand alongside the Dao Alliance and the Aeonian Kingdom as one of the most supreme powers of the Endless Territories. In front of him, even the most unruly of ancient powers would have to bow their heads.
"How is the latest batch of newcomer kids doing?" The six-horned, white-bearded old man slowly saunted towards them. Spacetime began to congeal and condense in the area around him. Although he wasn't intentionally flaring his aura, the tiny bit of it that was naturally leaking out of him was more than enough to make all the members of the imperial clan or the Twelve Palace to feel as though they could barely breathe.
"The newbies? That kid named Waterwalker has superb innate gifts. The others are a bit lacking by comparison." An incredibly muscular golden-armored man spoke out. This man was a bit excessively muscular. Even though he had already shrank down from his true size, his arms were still thicker than his head. There was clearly a bit of a mismatch in proportions. "Bertulu himself said that Waterwalker's innate gifts are comparable to the gifts of us Imperials or those Ancient cultivators."
"His innate gifts are indeed quite good. Unfortunately, he doesn't really understand anything." The white-bearded elder nodded slowly.
"As for those geniuses which Bertulu just battled against, he was able to defeat them all with ease. None of them can even compare to him." The muscular golden-armored man laughed. "Hegemon, Bertulu truly is quite talented in the Dao of Light. Let him enter our Palace of Radiance! I can promise that I'll take him on as my personal disciple and provide him personal guidance."
This muscular man was an incredibly famous figure in the Endless Territories known as Daolord Thousand Waves. He was one of the two Palace Lords of the Radiant Palace, a figure who was capable of causing tremendous waves within the Endless Territories.
"There are so few Heartforce Cultivators. Thousand Waves, why must you fight with me over one?" A figured covered in black robes spoke out in an ancient voice.
"Your Palace of Heartforce barely has any Daolords in it." Daolord Thousandwaves spoke in an utterly indomitable fashion.
"Although we are few in number, each of us has the power of ten or a hundred men," the illusory, formless figure underneath the black robes said.
"Oh? The power of ten? Then why don't you have someone in your Heartforce Palace come spar with me a bit?" Light began to gather within the eyes of Daolord Thousand Waves.
The black-robed figure was instantly rendered speechless.
Daolord Thousand Waves was one of the top ten experts of all the Twelve Palaces. If the Palace Lord of the Heartforce Palace was around, he might give Thousand Waves a run for his money, but he was out wandering the endless primordial chaos and hadn't returned in more than ten chaos cycles. At present, there really was no one in the Heartforce Palace who was a match for Daolord Thousand Waves.
"When the time comes for Bertulu to make his choice, the two of you can do your best to recruit him." The white-bearded elder smiled. "I won't get involved. Enough. These two kids are about to start their duel."
Rumble…
A series of moving images appeared in the air next to them. This was what was occurring within the dueling island. Ji Ning and Bertulu had just met each other.
"Darknorth isn't bad either. Unfortunately, his opponent is Bertulu."
"I wonder how long he will be able to hold on for?"
"That entirely depends on how long Bertulu wishes to play around for."
This was what all the major powers were saying.
They truly had very high opinions of Bertulu. It must be understood that the Astral Islands had helped train many groups of geniuses over the course of countless years, but it had been an extremely long period of time since someone had excited them as much as Bertulu. This was because Bertulu simply had an incredible level of insight into the Dao. It could be said that as soon as he broke through to become a Daolord of the First Step, he would instantly become capable of matching Daolords of the Third Step.
If he spent a little bit of time training and became a Daolord of the Second Step, he would be capable of battling Verge-level Daolords!
Although others such as Gorho were also capable of becoming Daolords whenever they wished, no one in the Twelve Palaces really cared about him, even though they knew that he was an Aeonian! So what if he was an Aeonian? Even Eternal Emperor Melobo of the Aeonians had been severely beaten and chased around by Daolord Allgod.
Gorho's level of enlightenment was far inferior to Bertulu's.
"Bertulu really is at the point where he should be breaking through to the Daolord level soon." A look of anticipation was in the white-bearded elder's eyes.
All the major powers were staring at the midair images, watching as the battle was about to begin.
The oceanic island.
A white-robed youth who carried a sword on his back was staring off into the distance. He saw a white-robed, white-haired youth off in the distance, a youth whose eyes seemed to contain the all the stars of the cosmos. When Ning saw those eyes, he couldn't help but be affected by their power.
"Incredible." Ning was secretly speechless.
"Darknorth, my name is Bertulu." The white-haired youth spoke out.
"Bertulu. I've heard of you, and I've been waiting for this battle for quite some time," Ning said. For some reason, although they had yet to fight Ning already felt a sense of tremendous pressure. "The stronger he is, the better. I want to see how powerful a World-level cultivator can become."
"You should be the strongest individual in the group of newcomers." Bertulu smiled. "I hope you won't disappoint me."
"Then take out your weapon," Ning said.
"Take out my weapon?" Bertulu smiled. "Let's see if you are strong enough first."
Although this was Ning's first time meeting Bertulu, he had heard long ago that Bertulu generally used his bare palms when fighting in close combat. The only time he had ever used his weapons was in his battles against Kilostar! This was Kilostar's evaluation: "Only once you fight him yourself will you truly understand how powerful he is. He is powerful enough to drive a man into despair. Only by using my thousand bodies formation am I able to make it so that he can do nothing to me."
Whoosh.
Ning stood there atop a mountain boulder. His body momentarily blurred as he manifested three heads and six arms, a sword in each of his six hands.
"Hahaha…" Bertulu laughed, then began to stride through the air towards Ning. As he did so, he delivered a punch from far away.
Boom! His punch seemed to strike out with the power of a meteor as its power crushed through Heaven and Earth, slamming down towards Ning from the air.
Ning's face tightened slightly, the desire to do battle growing even stronger in his heart. His opponent was fighting empty-handed, while he himself was using six Eternal swords. He had a huge advantage in this fight. "I have to force him to take out his weapons."
Whoosh. Ning's sword moved, transforming into a streak of absolutely dominating blood-colored light as it struck out against that fist.
Although it seemed to merely graze Bertulu's fist, it instantly was able to have an impact on his fist technique.
"Oh? Interesting." Bertulu laughed as he continued to stride forwards. He manifested six arms as well, then began to rain down blows with his fists like countless meteors shooting through the skies. His palms were like massive screens that blotted out the skies, and his fingers seemed to tear through everything in the world. Even though he still merely used his bare hands, his six hands were still strong enough to put pressure upon Ning with each strike. As for Ning, his pride prevented him from using his Elementum Waterflame Gourd.
Although Bertulu was strong, he was fighting empty-handed. Ning was already using six Eternal weapons against Bertulu's bare hands; how could Ning possibly take out the gourd as well? If he lost in a situation like this, he would be thoroughly convinced of the latter's superiority.
Rumble…
Bertulu circled around Ning at high speeds as he attacked, his aura flaring out and filling the heavens with each strike.
"Each time I watch Bertulu fight, I enjoy myself immensely."
"Right. I truly would never have imagined that a World-level cultivator could reach such a high level of insight."
The ancient powers in the dark abyss all sighed as they watched this battle go on.
The white-bearded elder nodded slowly. "When Dawnstar was at the World level, his saber-arts were comparable to Bertulu's fist techniques. However, Dawnstar was merely a dual refiner who did not train in heartforce."
"Dawnstar?"
"Palace Lord Dawnstar?"
"He was this powerful as well?"
"No wonder Palace Lord Dawnstar is so powerful now."
All the ancient powers nodded.
Without question, the most powerful Daolord of the Twelve Palaces was Palace Lord Dawnstar. He was the Palace Lord of the Palace of the Saber. Although he was 'merely' a Verge-level Daolord, on one occasion when he was enraged he had slain an ancient Eternal Emperor with just three strokes of his saber. His reputation was instantly spread throughout the Endless Territories! He was so dominatingly powerful that he was even stronger than Daolord Allgod had been.
For the Hegemon to compare Bertulu to Palace Lord Dawnstar was a sign of how great his expectations were for Bertulu.
Rumble…
Although Bertulu repeatedly circled around Ning and furiously assaulted him, he was unable to injure Ning in the slightest.
"If that's all you have, you won't even be able to scratch me," Ning said coldly.
"You are indeed worthy of making me use a weapon." A sword suddenly appeared in each of Bertulu's hands, and each sword was an Eternal weapon. The area around him became filled with endless flickers of light, and Bertulu himself was like the divine lord of the lights as he once more charged at Ning with those six swords at the ready.
His swords struck out in a fierce, dominating fashion. Ning was forced to defend with all his might.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"What powerful sword-arts! Still, the stronger he is the better." Ning only grew even more excited. The Thunderlight Wings suddenly appeared on his back, bolstering his footwork techniques. Each flutter of the wings and each step Ning took was like a stance from a sword-art. His movements and his attacks had all joined together into a perfect whole.
Ning struck out with his six Violetjewels simultaneously, transforming them into six streaks of bloody light that slashed out through the skies. Each time, he was able to defend against Bertulu's swords.
"He was actually able to defend against me?" Bertulu was rather startled. He called out, "What is your sword-art named?"
"During my thousand years here at the Astral Islands, I merged the Unicorn's Heart stance with my Astral stance and created a defensive technique," Ning replied. "I named it the Unicorn's Domain!"
"Unicorn's Domain?" Bertulu was slightly surprised.
The Unicorn's Domain represented Ning's most profound insights into the Dao of the Sword.
The Unicorn's Heart represented a certain level of insight into the sword that was focused on defense. Much like how the Heartsword stance represented the heart having full control of the sword and the world around it, or the Great Firmanent stance represented the power of an entire world, this stance represented a type of domain that was even more profound than the Unicorn's Heart. Ning had used the essence of the Unicorn's Heart and fused it with the even more powerful Astral stance to create this domain, his Unicorn's Domain!
He was able to defend against any attacks that entered this domain. Each time, his defenses were able to deflect and then counterattack the enemy. The Astral stance was merely a 'tool' in that using it with Violetjewel resulted in tremendous gains in power. For him to incorporate it into his Unicorn's Domain and use it to defend or deflect just made the power of the domain even greater and more effective.
By relying on this technique, Ning had been able to finally defeat the fisherman in the third Mirrorsnow Painting. However, Ning's sword-arts had since reached a true bottleneck, which was why he had decided to leave the Astral islands.
"This is the most powerful sword-art I have at present," Ning said. "Bertulu, I've already activated my Unicorn's Domain. If you can defeat this domain of mine, I will admit defeat."
"Haha, good. Aside from Kilostar, you are the only person in all the Astral Islands capable of forcing me to use my true weapons." Suddenly, the six swords vanished from Bertulu's hands. Moments later, two heavy warhammers appeared. One warhammer was black while the other was white, and both were Eternal weapons.
"Judging from the fist techniques you used earlier, I actually guessed that you specialize in something aside from sword-arts. It seems as though my guess was correct. You actually specialize in hammer-arts, using your hands as your hammers, right? Come. Let us see if you can break my Unicorn's Domain." Ning had absolute confidence in his Unicorn's Domain. This was a technique which was perfect for a weaker cultivator to defend against a stronger foe with. It was a defensive sword-art that avoiding facing a stronger foe's attacks head-on.
If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know report chapter so we can fix it as soon as possible.
Report chapter
