Chapter 96 - 840-849

Chapter 840: Leave For The Imperial Palace!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"The Super New Orleans…?"

What Xu Que said had confused Lord Zeng.He had never heard of that long and awkward name. Faintly spoken, he had only heard the Invincible Drumstick clearly.

"My young friend, do you want me to eat drumsticks?" Lord Zeng was surprised.

"It's not just a drumstick! Wait, Lord Zeng, are you a vegetarian?" Xu Que remembered Lord Zeng could be a monk. If he was a vegetarian, his drumstick burger would be useless!

"Why should I be a vegetarian? We also eat animals. However, I have been in a stage for many years where normally I don't eat anything!" Lord Zeng shook his head. Then he continued to say, "My young friend, why are we talking about food? We shouldn't talk about this topic at this time!"

"No, that's exactly what I want to say. Frankly speaking, the Exploding Heavens Faction is pretty good at making Medicated Diets, which are more effective than any elixirs and pills. You've seen the effect of the Spicy Strips just now. It happened that we also have a kind of drumstick burger which could enhance one stage for the user! Of course, just like the Spicy Strips, it is only effective when it is eaten for the first time!" Xu Que said in a low voice mysteriously.

Lord Zeng was totally shocked. He had seen the effect of the Spicy Strips, which were so powerful! He even planned to buy one Spicy Strip for himself by spending 500,000 best-grade Spirit Stones at the discount price of friendship. But now Xu Que told him another Medicated Diet could enhance a cultivation stage instantly, which shocked him and he didn't even have time to doubt it.

If such a miraculous thing really existed, he would definitely step into the celestial realm. As long as he could cross the final Heavenly Tribulation, he would become a legendary Celestial!

"My young friend, do you really have that?" Lord Zeng asked, his eyelids twitching.

From his voice, Xu Que could sense Lord Zeng was not as calm as before! "How could I fool you with this? Moreover, even I don't have it, you still have to fulfill your promise by helping me, right?" Xu Que said confidently with a faint smile.

Lord Zeng could say nothing to answer him. He opened his mouth but had to nod his head with a wry smile, "My young friend, what you said is right! Even if you don't have it, I still need to keep my promise. A Buddhist shall never break his word!"

"So, just don't worry, Lord Zeng. I will definitely give it to you at that time. Also, I don't need you to fight the Emperor with all your strength. What you need to do is just to distract him, so that we could have time to seize the God-realization Tree. After that, you could enhance your cultivation stage by eating the burger, which will free you from the concern about the Emperor's revenge in the future!" Xu Que said, patting Lord Zeng's shoulder like an old man.

It seemed Lord Zeng had made up his mind. He said, nodding his head without hesitation, "As you said, I've made a promise and I will honor it. As for that Medicated Diet of the Invincible Drumstick, if you could give it to me, I will owe you one more favor!"

"Great! I like cooperating with a straightforward person like you! Then, it is a deal. We will leave three days from now!" Xu Que laughed delightedly as he reached an agreement with Lord Zeng by shaking hands.

That day, Lord Zeng arranged for Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan to live in the pagoda. It was a quiet place. The smell of incense in the pagoda was not as strong as outside. Faint smells of sandalwood permeated the air, which was so refreshing and could even accelerate the speed of cultivation.

Xu Que took out the Celestial Concealment Herb given by Lord Zeng and gave it to Jiang Hongyan.

Now a strand of Jiang Hongyan's soul was trapped in the God-realization Tree. The Emperor could track Jiang Hongyan's actions with her soul easily.

However, she was in the Myriad Buddhas Sect, which was far away from the Tong Tian Nation. Together with the effect of the restrictive spells here, the Emperor couldn't sense her current location temporarily. But she would still be spotted after leaving the Myriad Buddhas Sect. Therefore, this Celestial Concealment Herb was extremely useful at this moment!

Jiang Hongyan received the herb and refined it with magic arts immediately.

Whoosh!

The Celestial Concealment Herb flew into the air and was floating above Jiang Hongyan's head. Then, it was turned into dazzling starbursts that drizzled down slowly.

When the Celestial Concealment Herb disappeared, Jiang Hongyan's aura was almost concealed. Even Xu Que, who was sitting beside her, couldn't sense her if he didn't try to find her deliberately!

"It is OK now!" Jiang Hongyan opened her eyes and said in a low voice as she looked at Xu Que gently.

"OK. Lord Zeng will distract the Emperor; we will sneak into the Imperial Palace and seize the God-realization Tree. Then, we could go back to the territory of the Heaven Orc Tribe before we find a way to go back to the Four Continents!" Xu Que nodded with a smile for he was quite satisfied with this plan.

Jiang Hongyan also knew the success rate of this plan was quite high. With the help of Lord Zeng, they were as powerful as the Emperor now. At least, they were strong enough to confront the Emperor directly!

…

At the same time, at the top level of the pagoda, Lord Zeng was looking at his daughter with a weird expression. The little Princess was putting the Spicy Strips into her mouth one after another, which were so delicious for Lord Zeng. However, he didn't want to ask his daughter to give him a Spicy Strip. Moreover, Xu Que had given the entire pot of the Spicy Strips to his daughter, and he couldn't buy one from Xu Que with 500,000 best-grade Spirit Stones anymore.

"Daddy, this one is for you!" The little Princess said, picking up a Spicy Strip considerately at this time as if she knew what her father was thinking.

Lord Zeng swallowed and said with a wry smile, "Thank you, but I'm not hungry now."

"No, just eat it, daddy!" The little Princess insisted as she poked the Spicy Strip into Lord Zeng's face, which stained his face with many chile sauces. Lord Zeng couldn't help but smile. Without further rejection, he opened his mouth and bit the Spicy Strip. After enjoying the unique chewiness and delicate flavor of the Spicy Strip, he felt a magnificent strength appear in his mind suddenly, which even made his body tremble. Instantly, he opened his eyes in surprise.

Even though he knew the effect of this Spicy Strip before, he was still shocked after tasting it personally. The effect of a Medicated Diet made from ordinary bean curd skin could be so extraordinary. It was even more effective than any pills and elixirs!

"With this, I managed to increase my Soul Strength 50 percent easily. I guess I will be more powerful than the Emperor after enhancing my Taoist Connotation by comprehending my Tao again!" At the thought of this, Lord Zeng was really looking forward to the drumstick burger mentioned by Xu Que.

"Thanks to the blessing of Buddha. That guy is a little bit weird and perverse. However, he is a man of justice who saved my daughter and brought me such a precious opportunity! In comparison, I will only distract the Emperor for him, which is nothing to speak of!"

He murmured in a low voice as he shook his head with a faint smile, "Anyway, I didn't expect the celebrated Empress of our Xuanzhen Continent could fall in love with that guy, which is so astonishing!"

…

Three days passed rapidly.

Xu Que kept sitting in meditation in these days, so that his Taoist Connotation could reach the perfect condition. He used the 50,000 points of Skill Essence in his Heaven and Earth Seal, which even improved the Fantasy Killing Seal to the summit condition. During this period, he also wandered around in the pagoda and tried to steal some magic arts from Lord Zeng, so that he could sell them to the System.

However, he only found Buddhist scriptures in this pagoda, which were not powerful magic arts. Xu Que gave up his plan directly. Anyway, now the Heaven and Earth Seal was still less powerful than the King of Tough-Acting Fist. He shouldn't be anxious for the enhancement of its power.

Knock! Knock!

Someone knocked at the door of Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan early in the morning.

They woke up from their cultivation and opened their eyes. Then, they heard Lord Zeng's voice coming in from outside, "Guys, it's time for us to leave for the Imperial Palace now!"

…

Chapter 841: Take Double the Payback!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

When the trio left the Myriad Buddhas Sect, they carefully hid their stature and breath, all to avoid the pursuit of the Emperor's men nearby. After all, Jiang Hongyan had not received the Celestial Concealment Herb when she arrived with Xu Que. The Emperor must have known that she had come to the Myriad Buddhas Sect; however, now with the coverage from the Celestial Concealment Herb and the engulfment of Lord Zeng's powerful Soul Strength, they managed to leave undetected.

After a long journey boarding and traveling through several Teleportation Spells, the three of them arrived outside a remote mountain village in the Tong Tian Nation after more than ten days.

"According to our plan, I will first go to the Imperial Palace and pick some bones with that old fellow. I'll keep him away from the palace, but the rest is up to you two. Since that old fellow was always distrustful, I'm afraid you don't have a lot of time. You'd better get that tree out within three days!" Lord Zeng solemnly advised.

According to the plan they had developed along the way, Lord Zeng would be the first to set out. After the Emperor was led away, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan would sneak into the Imperial Palace to steal the God-realization Tree. In any case, it was a rough and straightforward tactic to lure the enemy away from his base, but it was undeniably the most convenient and efficient. Also, it had the highest success rate of all the plans they had discussed!

After giving his advice, Lord Zeng left in a hurry and headed toward the Imperial Palace.

They were racing against time; the quicker they started, the better their chances.

Xu Que looked at Lord Zeng's disappearing silhouette and pursed his lips slightly: "C'mon, Hongyan, let's follow him!"

"Huh? Aren't we supposed to wait for four hours?" Jiang Hongyan asked curiously.

"That's just what we told him. If we wait here for four hours, we'll be in danger if he betrays us!" Xu Que shook his head and said. He was never a man for waiting.

With his personality, it was impossible for him to trust Lord Zeng unreservedly even if he had thought well of him. Therefore, Xu Que made a plan that belonged solely to them both.

Otherwise, if Lord Zeng betrayed them, them waiting here would be like fishes throwing themselves into the net. It would be too passive!

"Rest assured, little fellow. According to Lord Zheng's character, he will not be of bad faith. If he wanted to harm us, there's no need to use such means. He could have done it himself ages ago!" Jiang Hongyan chuckled and told Xu Que that he didn't need to be too vigilant, hoping that he would relax.

Xu Que shook his head again and said, "I also believe that Lord Zheng's not that kind of person. I am just preparing for the worst, just in case! And my new plan is perfect, more effective than the previous plan. If all goes well, we might even push from behi…bah, no, catch them off-guard! With the original diversion tactic, it will be a two-pronged approach!"

"Okay!" Jiang Hongyan looked at Xu Que's face and nodded with a smile. Anyway, she would always believe in Xu Que's decisions. As a result, as soon as Lord Zeng had left, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan set off quickly for the Imperial Palace as well. Xu Que just had a small change in his new plan. They would take a shortcut and reach the Imperial Palace before Lord Zheng!

…

For the next ten days, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan used the transmission Array to ensure not a second was wasted. They had finally arrived outside the Imperial Palace!

Xu Que was shocked.

He had thought that the Imperial Palace would be similar to the palace in the Five Elements Mountain or just a more enormous and magnificent palace! He never expected to see a heavenly palace suspended in the sky, made from countless white Spiritual Jades.

It was almost the same as what he had seen in mythological dramas he saw back on earth when he was a child. A spiritual mist surrounded it and, with only the palace visible in the fog, it appeared to be extraordinarily divine.

"Little Miss, my god, you lived here in your previous life? No wonder, this proves that I must have guessed right! When I first saw you, I thought you must be a fairy, but also only a god could….cough, no, you're a fairy anyway! That's terrific!" Xu Que was both shocked and amazed.

Because ever since Xu Que's arrival in the cultivator world, he had seen countless magic and many magnificent buildings. However, this was his first time witnessing such a structure that completely hovered in the air. It was like a magnificent structure from Heaven, full of fairy existence!

At this time, he realized that he seemed to be a step closer to the immortal, who seemed so out of reach before. At least, such a thing as "getting Tao to become immortal" no longer felt illusory!

"In my memory, this is but a cold and heartless place. There is no beauty worth reminiscing about!" Jiang Hongyan looked at the Imperial Palace with a complex expression, and said softly.

Xu Que knew that Jiang Hongyan was reminded of her awful past. From an early age, she had been controlled by the emperor as a puppet. She was carefully cultivated to extract her soul to be implanted into the God-realization Tree. After that, she was slaughtered and reincarnated with immortal artifacts. The Emperor had made her a tool to steal the kismet and Enlightenment of heaven and earth, all to seize them from her later.

However, all these were still ideas of the Emperor planning for his future. Once he refined the God-realization Fruit and the soul of Jiang Hongyan, he could take away Jiang Hongyan's kismet and use it for himself. No one could imagine how messed up a man had to be, to commit such cruelty to his child!

"Rest assured. I will avenge whatever he did to you; I will double the payback!" Xu Que turned his head and looked at Jiang Hongyan. He reached out and gently scraped the tip of her nose. Jiang Hongyan smiled slightly. Her elegance was extraordinary and beautiful enough to make everything else lose color!

Boom!

At this time, a sound of something breaking the air suddenly came from the distant clouds.

In a blink of an eye, a golden light pierced the clouds and appeared directly outside the Imperial Palace, turning into a figure. It was Lord Zeng! He did keep his promise. As soon as he arrived, he released his soul and shouted angrily, "Old Ji, you are going to answer me today! How on earth did my Myriad Buddhas Sect ever offend you!"

As his voice fell, Lord Zeng put his palms together. His whole body bloomed into a ray of dazzling golden light, like a power to purify the world that shone in all directions.

Xu Que hid in the distance and was stunned to hear Lord Zeng's roar.

Old Ji?

Jiang Hongyan's surname was Ji in her previous life. Should he call her Ji Hongyan or Jiang Hongyan from now on?

Boom!

A terrible loud crash and the golden light on Lord Zheng's body thundered toward the Imperial Palace! Outside the Imperial Palace, a hemispherical light screen flashed. The dome forcefully blocked the golden light but also dimmed instantly. Then, an audible crisp clack resounded. The light screen instantly cracked and broke apart!

However, right when the protection was about to collapse, an unmatched Taoist Connotation suddenly swept out of the Imperial Palace!

Boom!

With a loud bang, he had blasted Lord Zheng's golden light into oblivion. Moments later, a pair of golden luans, basking in a delightful glow, pulled a carriage out of the spiritual mist.

A man in a Golden Dragon Robe sat in the carriage. His hair had turned white, but his face was childlike; his skin was as smooth and tender as a baby. He looked indifferent and carried an air of neutral and self-assertive dignity. High and mighty, his eyes swept toward Lord Zeng. He bellowed, "Fat Buddha, what's the meaning of this? Are you declaring war?"

"Hmph! What's the meaning of this, you ask? I'm the one who should be asking you that! Your daughter brought a teenager along and barged into the Myriad Buddhas Sect, wreaking havoc and even stole my Celestial Concealment Herb. Tell me then, what's the meaning of that?" Lord Zeng showed no intention of retreating. Instead, he heightened his powerful aura and crushed it directly down at the emperor.

"Nonsense! My daughter was in the Imperial Palace doing Secluded Meditation and never left. How could she appear in your Myriad Buddhas Sect? Have you gone crazy seeking the Buddha?" The Emperor hummed coldly.

Lord Zeng, however, looked furious and shouted, "My Buddha is merciful! Today, I will help you to cross the bitter sea of life!"

Boom!

Before the sounds of the Buddha ceased, Lord Zeng slapped his palms together and pushed them forward. Lord Zeng was truly furious. The Emperor looked down on his Buddhist doctrine, which was tantamount to provoking the belief he was pursuing!

"Atrocious! Do you truly want to fight with me?" The Emperor also frowned and roared.

Lord Zeng's attack was crushingly powerful. It was clear that he wanted to fight head on.

Lord Zheng ignored his comments. After pushing out a palm move, a golden Buddha seal suddenly ploughed down at the emperor.

"Do you think that I'm afraid of you? You couldn't even keep an eye on your things, yet you dare to come to me for justice! You are seeking death today!" the Emperor shouted angrily and swept out from the luan carriage. He bounced off the top of the golden luan's head and flung out a purple glow from his palm; like imperial air coming from the east, it bore down at Lord Zeng.

Boom!

With two great powerhouses at the Great Vehicle Stage fighting, the collision they made was terrifying! The whole void was shattered and cracked.

Fortunately, Lord Zeng deliberately lured the Emperor astray, and the further away he fought with the Emperor, the battlefield gradually headed far from the Emperor's palace.

"So, this is the real strength of the Great Vehicle Stage! By contrast, Qin Wei is nothing…. Xu Que was shocked and glad that he had not been impulsive enough to pick a fight with the Emperor without any plan. But now, with Lord Zeng starting the fight, it was time for him to act too!

"Come with me, little fellow. The God-realization Tree is hidden somewhere in the Imperial Palace!" At this time, Jiang Hongyan opened her mouth, ready to take Xu Que into the Imperial Palace!

Xu Que suddenly stopped her and said with a smile, "Wait a minute, little miss!"

"What's wrong?"Jiang Hongyan was startled.

Xu Que smirked. "I'm going to make him lose more than just one tree!"

Jiang Hongyan suddenly became more confused; she did not understand Xu Que's words.

There was only one tree of God-realization. If they took it away, it would be a waste of the thousands of years of sacred effort he had put in it. This cost was enough to hurt the Emperor to his core!

"Do you remember the rules of the Exploding Heavens Faction?" Xu Que narrowed his eyes and looked abruptly at the vast Imperial Palace in front of him. He sneered, "When the Exploding Heavens goes to war, not a blade of grass will grow at all! When the Exploding Heavens appears; all they leave is a thread and a single needle!"

He bullied you all those years ago, and in this lifetime I'll make him pay; I'll take double the payback. This palace, first of all, shall be considered as the interest!"

With those words, Jiang Hongyan looked at Xu Que in astonishment. Xu Que's figure suddenly blurred and transformed into a bolt of light, and it swept toward the Imperial Palace.

Boom!

With a big wave of his hand, he poured out an enormous amount of true core. At the same time, he called out the System interface and shouted: "System, open the second Holy-Weapon Keeping Pavilion! Collect the entire Imperial Palace for me! Remember to leave him a needle and thread!"

Chapter 842: He's Not An Outsider!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Boom!

At that instant, the System granted Xu Que an unseeable force. It perked up Xu Que, as a tremendous power flowed out of his body.

"Here comes a 40,000 points of King of Tough-Acting Fist!" Xu Que bellowed and swung a punch!

Thud!

The whole Imperial Palace shook violently. After Lord Zeng's intentional blow, the dome-shaped spell barrier protecting it was already filled with cracks and nearing collapse. Now that Xu Que had struck it directly with his strongest King of Tough-Acting Fist, the light screen exploded into many shining fragments.

Almost at the same time, the Holy Weapon-Keeping Pavilion unleashed its powers. With its unstoppable, overwhelming, and thunderous force, it engulfed the whole Imperial Palace.

Boom!

The next second, the whole Imperial Palace shook with a huge crashing sound. Someone had uprooted it entirely from the ground!

"Atrocious! Who dares to lay a finger on our Imperial Palace!"

Instantly, countless silhouettes shot out of the Imperial Palace. Imperial guards, generals…a huge, crowded mass of people streamed out at once They were horrified deep down. The guards had just sent away Lord Zeng, but who would have thought that a demon would suddenly descend and shake the whole Imperial Palace!

However, they were stunned when they saw just a young man at the Form Synthesis Stage floating above the Imperial Palace.

"What's the situation?"

"Where's the person who shook the Imperial Palace?"

"Lowlife! I'll give you three seconds to come clean about your accomplices' whereabouts!"

The generals at the Great Vehicle Stage stared down at Xu Que, their gazes and auras crushing, coercive, and authoritative.

"Accomplices? Nah, they don't exist! One is enough for most missions – that's how we, the Exploding Heavens Faction, roll!"

The System had determined that the Imperial Palace was a Multifunction Low-Grade Celestial Artifact.

While Xu Que had no clue on what its functions were, since it was a celestial artifact, the rest was easy. Without any hesitation, he changed his initial plan from seizing the God-realization Tree to capturing the whole Imperial Palace!

Boom!

The immense power was still in force, swallowing the Imperial Palace and shaking it. The speed at which the System collected the celestial artifact was not that fast, as it needed to compress the Imperial Palace bit by bit.

All of the generals and imperial guards shook at Xu Que's move.

"How's that possible?"

"That lad could make the whole Imperial Palace tremble!"

"He's just a mere Form Synthesis Stage cultivator! How did he do that?"

"Not good. We need to kill him fast!"

The crowd came to their senses and quickly charged toward Xu Que, riding on Magic Arts.

"How insolent!���

A crystalline and melodious, yet authoritative, voice suddenly came from behind. All of the generals and guards paused for a second and stood stunned when they saw who it was that floated in the air. The incomer was Jiang Hongyan, the Empress of this Tong Tian Nation! Her appearance made everyone present turn pale!

"Greetings to the Holy Senior!" At once, countless Imperial guards and generals all bowed in fearful respect.

Jiang Hongyan did not respond; instead, she scanned them coldly and emotionlessly. Her regalness was overwhelming and crushing.

Crash!

Xu Que was still taming the Imperial Palace. He raised the entire palace higher into the air, compressing it further. He didn't forget to turn and wink cheekily at Jiang Hongyan.

His childlike behavior amused Jiang Hongyan, who struggled not to smile, lest her domineering aura broke.

"Holy Senior, this man is attacking our Imperial Palace! Please give us an order to kill him!" A general at the Great Vehicle Stage stepped out and awaited Jiang Hongyan's orders.

Jiang Hongyan scanned him indifferently but did not answer.

That general froze apprehensively.

At the same time, a few other generals also came out and bowed, as they shouted, "Holy Senior, please give us an order to execute the invader!"

"Holy Senior, please give us an order!"

"Holy Senior, please give us an order!"

At that instant, the atmosphere infected everyone else, and they yelled in cohesion as if trying to overthrow the Empress in a coup!

"Relay my verbal order!" Jiang Hongyan finally spoke up. While her expression may have seemed indifferent, her tone was final, "Anyone who gets up without my permission shall be executed right away!"

"What?"

The generals and Imperial guards all raised their heads in shock. They couldn't believe their ears.

"Ha ha, there must be something wrong with your head, trying to kill me! Can you even do it? Stand up if you've got guts! Stand up! Let's see who'll die first!" Xu Que booed as he tamed the Imperial Palace.

However, the crowd ignored him. They continued to look at Jiang Hongyan in shock, and asked loudly, "Holy Senior, why…why are you doing this? If we don't move now, he will destroy the Imperial Palace!"

"Holy Senior, what's going on exactly?"

Many generals fretted anxiously. Some even wanted to disobey the Empress's orders and stop Xu Que, as the Imperial Palace was now lifted high into the sky and was getting smaller by the second.

The palace maids and eunuchs of the Imperial Palace, as well as countless soldiers, were all squeezed out of the palace and fell onto the ground.

Jiang Hongyan's face was devoid of any expression. She stood powerfully in front of them, shielding Xu Que.

"Please give us an order, Holy Senior, or else I will have no choice but to go against your instructions,"a general said at last, unable to stay still any longer. By doing that, it was equivalent to going against the Empress's royal decree.

However, all the other generals soon followed suit and chorused loudly, "We, your subjects, implore you to give us a new order, Holy Senior!"

Alas, Jiang Hongyan was as calm as still water and ignored them.She had said all that she wanted to say.

"All right. If the Holy Senior insists, forgive me for my defiance! I cannot stand by and do nothing while the Imperial Palace gets destroyed!" Said a general at Level 2 of the Great Vehicle Stage. He got up at once and raised the long spear in his hands, plunging to kill Xu Que.

Swoosh!

Suddenly, a golden light flared between Jiang Hongyan's porcelain fingers. It shone and glittered like stars, blinding and bright, and went straight for that general's throat!

The general was startled. He quickly swerved to protect himself.

Clunk!

With a crisp trembling ring, the golden gleam fell onto his long spear, as if littered with starlight. The entire long spear fell apart instantly, and the golden shimmer exploded into a massive radiance, piercing the general in a split second!

Puu!

The general vomited blood at once, the whole of his body pierced through by that golden light. He tumbled toward the ground, as dead as he could be.

At that moment, the whole arena fell deadly silent.

Every single general and guard was stunned. No one imagined that Jiang Hongyan would be so ruthless in her execution, that she would put a general at Level 2 of the Great Vehicle to death without any hesitation.

"Holy Senior, what are you doing? Don't tell us that you'll help an outsider destroy the whole Imperial Palace?" One of the generals yelled furiously, for the one she killed was his elder brother!

"Holy Senior, if you want to protect him, kill us all then!" One hard-headed man bellowed and got up from the ground. Once someone had made the first move, the rest naturally followed. All of the subjects looked at Jiang Hongyan directly.

It's not that they aren't afraid to die. It's just that the guards and generals assumed that she couldn't do anything if everybody rebelled – they didn't believe that Jiang Hongyan would kill them all for an outsider!

However, they were ultimately wrong.

As not only would Jiang Hongyan dare to do it, she would do it without any hesitation!

Swoosh!

She raised her slender hands as her sleeves swayed with the wind; a huge, overwhelming wave of Taoist Connotation flowed out of her, and her True Core Strength shot up suddenly. It transformed into a blinding golden light, pure and holy, as it laid down onto the earth.

Boom!

A great crack resounded in the skies as the thunder toiled away; it became strands of lightning and crashed down from the heavens. The lightning bolts fused into the golden beat and swiftly condensed into a mark consisting of the might of heavens!

Everybody present paled instantly.

"This…this is the Emperor's Mark!" Said someone, shaken to his core.

"That's impossible! The Emperor's Mark could activate the rune in our bodies; it is the art of Your Majesty, and he never taught her! Where did she learn it?" Exclaimed someone in disbelief, his face filled with horror.

The Emperor's Mark was the magic art that the Emperor used to control them. He would bury the rune into the bodies of every single subject that entered the Imperial Palace. It ensured their loyalty, as he could destroy anyone who dared to commit treason with just an Emperor's Mark.

That was what was meant by the saying – Subjects must obey their Emperor, even if he orders them to die!

Crash!

The Emperor's Mark is complete.

All of the generals and Imperial guards present felt chills down their spine as if their lives were within the clutches of the Empress. She needs no more than a single thought to kill every single one of them!

"Holy Senior, are you really killing all of us for an outsider?" Yelled one of the generals who had reached his limit. He still couldn't believe that Jiang Hongyan would dare to kill them all and thought that she was simply threatening them to follow her orders.

"He's not an outsider!" All of a sudden, Jiang Hongyan spoke up calmly, and a beautiful smile graced her lips. She answered softly, "He's my man!"

As her voice fell, the Emperor's Mark that appeared in midair exploded violently!

Boom!

Immeasurable golden gleams shone brightly as they pierced through the foreheads of every single general and Imperial guard present, completely igniting the runes within their bodies!

Within seconds, several hundred Imperial guards and generals fell dead instantly!

Chapter 843: Where Is My Imperial Palace?

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The success of a general builds on a million bones. Jiang Hongyan had never pursued any lofty ambitions. However, in order to protect Xu Que, she wiped out hundreds of guards and generals without a second of hesitation. Her assault was over within minutes.

Afterwards, she remained as quiet and dignified as ever. It was as if nothing in the world could affect Jiang Hongyan. The only exception was the man up in the air, who was taking over the Imperial Palace for her. He was her everything!

Whiz!

A muffled thud resounded in the air.

Xu Que had successfully taken over the Imperial Palace. The System had compressed the vast Imperial Palace to the size of a hand and stored it next to the Ancient Life and Death Wheel.

Xu Que's figure flashed and descended from the skies. He returned to Jiang Hongyan's side and smiled cheekily, "It's over, my woman. We can go now!"

Jiang Hongyan smiled and stretched out her slim hand. Xu Que returned her smile and held her soft and slender hand. Lightning formed under their feet, and they shot through the sky, sweeping away to the distance.

Only debris was left where the Imperial Palace had once stood. A messy heap of earth remained where Xu Que had uprooted the palace. Many people who were living in the Imperial Palace – the maids, eunuchs, prison guards, and ministers – were struck dumb at the latest development. Their minds had gone completely blank. They could not believe that the Holy Senior, who had disappeared hundreds of years ago, would kill so many guards and generals in front of them. And then she had even left hand in hand with that young man.

What was most frightening was that the young man had been able to dig up the whole Imperial Palace. Moreover, he was only at the Form Synthesis Stage!

What was the meaning of this?

It was much worse than stealing the girl!

He has stolen our Holy Senior and the Imperial Palace. Who on earth was that fellow?

Swish!

All of a sudden, a few streams of light descended over them.

Then, with a metallic sound – ding! – several embroidery needles and a pile of fine thread fell onto the ground around them. Xu Que's voice rang out from afar: "We, the Exploding Heavens Faction, are principled and upright. No matter how deep our hatred runs, we will never steal needle and thread. Take them back. We return the needles and threads of the Imperial Palace!"

He spoke assertively, as if he was declining something in a way neither servile nor overbearing. The audience was beyond angry. They went green in the face, but could not do anything. No one dared to chase after them, and no one dared to face Jiang Hongyan. They knew full well the Holy Senior's prowess!

"It seems that the Holy Senior will never come back again!" Someone shook his head.

"But the Emperor will!" Someone stated with concern. They would be greeted with the Emperor's seething rage when he returned!

"This is bad. We'd better leave as soon as possible. Since the Imperial Palace is gone, we are free!"

"Run!"

After this conversation, countless maids and eunuchs and even some Imperial guards fled without any hesitation.

…

Meanwhile, somewhere thousands of miles away from the Imperial Palace, the two figures were still fighting. Magic spells exploded high into the sky, causing the void to tremble and shatter at places. It was a horrifying scene.

Lord Zeng held good to his word and fought the Emperor with everything he had. The battle lasted three days and three nights. When the sun rose on the fourth morning, the two men had depleted their True Core Strength somewhat, but neither of them had suffered any injuries. At their level of cultivation power, no one could win unless they unleashed their Celestial Artifacts and fought to the death.

"Hmph, Fat Zeng! If you keep biting into me tightly like this, don't blame me for fighting you with my Celestial Artifact!" In the end, the Emperor lost patience and seethed.

Lord Zeng, however, did not back down. He answered coldly, "Your daughter seized my Celestial Concealment Herb, and I will not let the matter go this easily. Unleash your Celestial Artifact if you want! Did you think I don't have one?"

With that, Lord Zeng made a big wave and called out a golden wheel. The golden wheel emitted brilliant rays and scorching temperatures even before its activation.

The Emperor frowned, apparently unwilling to fight Lord Zeng to this extent. He feared that he would be injured. In Xuanzhen Continent, there were other influential powerhouses at his level, eyeing an opportunity to make their moves.

"Forget it. Isn't it just a Celestial Concealment Herb? I'll go back and open the Treasure Cove and return one to you!" The Emperor said in a low voice. He had given in in the end.

Lord Zeng looked slightly pacified, but he shook his head: "I don't care about a mere celestial herb, but your daughter and that kid disrespected me by committing such actions! They took my name and raked it through the mud, as well as the reputation of my Myriad Buddhas Sect! If you don't give me an answer, what face will I have left if it is leaked to the public in the future?"

"Hmph! Who would dare to laugh at the Myriad Buddhas Sect when you, Fat Zeng, are in charge? I advise you to accept what I offer. Otherwise, it will only end in a lose-lose situation!" The Emperor laughed coldly.

Then Lord Zeng frowned and, after a little moment of silence, he said, "Old Ji, no need to say anything further. I know you won't hand over your daughter, but you can't protect the boy who was with her. I will kill him!"

With that, Lord Zeng turned around and flew away.

The Emperor looked at him darkly as he walked away. Once certain that Lord Zeng had left, he smiled disdainfully. He shook his head and sneered, "To think that you are as foolish as I had always!said you were. Such arrogance. Even if you don't kill that kid, I will when I see him!"

Then he headed back to the Imperial Palace.

However, after a few moments, he arrived at where the Imperial Palace was supposed to be and saw the barren ground. Shocked, he thought that he must have gone down the wrong road and looked around unbelievingly. Then, all of a sudden, reality hit him, and he was utterly beside himself.

Imperial Palace! Where is my Imperial Palace!" He screamed in shock and anger. He became so furious that his hair was standing on end, and he was consumed by rage.

"Who did this?"

A world-shaking roar rang throughout the area.

…

Much later, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan quietly returned to the Myriad Buddhas Sect. They arrived roughly around the same time as Lord Zeng. When Lord Zeng saw that Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan had returned earlier than he did, he was stunned.

"Young friends, have you…failed?" Lord Zeng asked in astonishment.

According to their plans, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan should not be back this soon or maybe would not even return at all.

"You worry too much, Lord Zeng. When I strike, I never miss!" Xu Que immediately laughed.

Lord Zheng nodded his head and smiled at the two. "Congratulations then, to you and the Holy Senior!"

Lord Zeng showed a trace of curiosity and looked at Xu Que. "Young friend, I wonder if you could show me the legendary God-realization Fruit? I've heard about the Emperor's success, but nobody has seen it. I'm curious!"

"I'm afraid that that is impossible. Your place is too small to accommodate it!" Xu Que answered, apparently in a dilemma. It was not that he didn't want to take it out. The God-realization Tree was in the Imperial Palace, and the Imperial Palace lay in the Holy-Weapon Keeping Pavilion. To take it out, he would need first to move the whole Imperial Palace out.

"Too…too small? My friend, you must be joking. This Myriad Buddhas Sect of mine is vast. How could it be too small to accommodate such a small God-realization Tree?" Lord Zeng asked in confusion.

Xu Que smiled and said, "I'm not talking about the God-realization Tree. I'm talking about the Imperial Palace!"

"The Imperial Palace?" Lord Zeng asked, bewildered and more confused than ever, unable to know how to react.

"Well, you might not believe it, but I uprooted the entire Imperial Palace!" Xu Que said with a smile.

Lord Zeng was shocked and stunned for a moment, then he almost fell off his chair as he trembled at the realization.

"You…you mean you seized the entire Imperial Palace? H-how is that even possible?" Shock filled his face. He couldn't believe what he had just heard, but at the same time he felt that Xu Que wasn't joking.

"Haha, Lord Zeng, don't get so agitated! The Imperial Palace, when taken back to the Exploding Heavens Faction, will be nothing more than a dog's kennel! Ah, right, Buttface can use it!" Xu Que sang boastfully.

Lord Zeng quickly went pale and lost the ability to respond. After some time, he looked at Xu Que solemnly and said, "Young friend, I know not of the impressive means you used to seize the Imperial Palace. However, it's a done deed. I can only advise you to leave the Xuanzhen Continent immediately. The farther you go, the better!"

"All right. Farewell!"

Once Xu Que had heard those words, he took up Jiang Hongyan's hand and left right away.

Uh? Lord Zeng was taken aback and watched them leave with a blank expression.

What just happened?

That's not how the plot is supposed to go! Don't people normally ask why when they hear such words?

How is it that this guy always plays his cards so eccentrically?

Tell him to leave, and he leaves at once.

Crap, wait a minute! You haven't given me that Orleans Chicken Burger you promised!

Chapter 844: Road of Heavenly Ascension

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Wait up, little friend!"

Lord Zeng quickly stood up and asked in confusion, "You're leaving just like that? How then are you two going to escape the Xuanzhen Continent?"

Xu Que stopped in his tracks, then turned to Lord Zeng. He laughed. "Lord Zeng, who said anything about escaping? I'm just going back for the time being to cultivate in secluded meditation. Within a couple of years, I will return to take the life of that dog of an Emperor!"

Lord Zeng did not know how to respond.

Yes, Xu Que was powerful, that he would admit. However, would he be strong enough to kill the Emperor after two or three years of secluded meditation? He did not think so. Who in their right mind would believe such absurd words?

Therefore, he paid it no mind and asked instead, "Little friend, even if you're going into secluded meditation, do you believe that there would be a place for you in the Xuanzhen Continent?" He paused and smiled wistfully. He shook his head. "You have snatched away the God-realization Tree, which would anger the Emperor for sure. The Emperor that I knew would be in no rush to kill you; he's highly confident that he could track you down and retrieve the God-realization tree. Once you take away his Imperial Palace, however, it would be akin to you announcing to the whole world that you had humiliated him. In that case, he would use all of his power to make the entire Xuanzhen Continent hunt you down!"

"That's nothing. When worst comes to worst, I'll leave the Xuanzhen Continent!" Xu Que shrugged. "Lord Zeng, let me tell you something. In fact, I…came from the Four Great Continents!"

"What?" Shock overcame Lord Zeng, and he asked disbelievingly, "You came from the Four Great Continents? That's…that's impossible! Weren't the Four Great Continents locked away by the shackles for several thousand years? It was about to break but then was suddenly strengthened not too long ago. How did you manage to come here?"

"We came over via the Immortal Hall." Jiang Hongyan answered in a soft tone. With a wave of her slender hands, a miniature Ancient Bronze Hall appeared atop her palm.

Back when she came over from the Four Great Continents, the Immortal Hall had disappeared together with them. It turned out that it had entered Jiang Hongyan's body. She could now control the entirety of the Immortal Hall like a Soulbound Weapon.

"Right after I got killed all those years ago, I was transported to the Four Great Continents using this Ancient Bronze Hall. I was born and raised on that land. When I reached the Void Training Stage, I broke the restraints within this hall and inherited the knowledge about my past life." Jiang Hongyan murmured with a complicated expression. She seemed to recall how she had gotten killed in her past life.

"I see," Lord Zeng nodded. His eyelids had twitched the moment he saw the Immortal Hall. He then continued, "If this Hall brought you both back here, then that'll explain it."

"Yo, Lord Zeng. In that case, does it mean that you too knew about the origins of the Immortal Hall?" Xu Que asked as Lord Zeng's words had piqued his interest.

Lord Zeng nodded at first, only to shake his head the next second. With a mellow voice, he started, "To be exact, I just knew half of the origins of the Immortal Hall, no, maybe even less. We would need to begin with the Road of Heavenly Ascension.…"

In the pagoda, the Lord began to recount the origins of the Immortal Hall.

It was about 2,000 years ago. At that time, Lord Zeng was just a monk, and the Emperor was only one of the princes of the Tong Tian Nation. The year that the Road of Heavenly Ascension opened, a total of 18 entrances appeared all over the Xuanzhen Continent. All races, be it humans, demons, demonic beasts, or Heaven Orcs, all fought to enter the Road of Heavenly Ascension.

According to legend, you could find the essence on how to attain immortality at the end of the Road of Heavenly Ascension. Naturally, Sovereigns such as the young Lord Zeng and the Emperor entered too. After making it past all sorts of danger, they had finally reached the end of the Road of Heavenly Ascension. However, what stood in front of them was a stone wall that blocked their way. They had exhausted all methods, but they could not break the stone wall. The wall would absorb all the Spiritual Energy, they realized. Therefore, no matter what sort of magic arts you used on it,they would be ineffective. The only way to break it was through brute strength.

However, none of the Physical Cultivators had made it to the end of the road. They decided to retreat and look for an adequate number of Physical Cultivators, before returning to break the stone wall. However, when they returned, the stone wall had disappeared.

"It disappeared?" Xu Que asked incredulously. Don't tell him that it was an upgrade version of entering nowhere? That even the walls could appear and disappear at will!

"That's right. We were sure that we had followed the same road, but for some reason, the stone wall was gone. In its place, stood an enormous palace built out of white jade."

The Lord landed a meaningful glance on Xu Que. He chuckled. "Little friend, that would be the Imperial Palace that you snatched from the Emperor. The Imperial Palace was the white jade palace that we saw on the Road of Heavenly Ascension that day!"

"Crap! No wonder…." Xu Que finally understood. It made sense now that a palace could become a Celestial Artifact. What an incredible origin; to think that it had come from a road that led to immortality!

Suddenly, Lord Zeng turned to Jiang Hongyan and smiled. "At that time, we returned to the road with over 100 Physical Cultivators that the Emperor had brought. Since the wall was no longer there, he ordered them to move the whole palace directly. Thanks to that, we found another ancient palace suppressed underneath the white jade palace. It was the Immortal Hall with a stone coffin within it. Inside the stone coffin, laid a woman!"

"What?" Xu Que was shocked by that information and immediately looked at Jiang Hongyan. She, too, had laid within the Immortal Hall! Jiang Hongyan was also surprised and confused.

Lord Zeng did not leave them hanging and told them the truth right away. "That woman was your mother, the Empress. The Emperor had brought with him both the Imperial Palace and the Immortal Hall from the road. Not long after, a mysterious incident happened. The previous Emperor and all other princes died tragically from it, all except for the current Emperor, who became the only heir to ascend the throne. The day he took the throne, your mother woke from the stone coffin and forgot about everything. The Emperor then made her his Empress."

The room fell silent at his words.

Xu Que needed some time to digest, while Jiang Hongyan looked dejected. She had never heard anything about the past, not even that her Mother had come from such a mysterious background. A long pause later, she asked Lord Zeng, "Why did she die after I was born?"

"Looks like you were kept in the dark all along!" Lord Zeng let out a short laugh, before shaking his head. "I'm not surprised. With Old Man Ji's character, he would not mention these. Your mother, the Empress, isn't dead. She simply left without a word for the Road of Heavenly Ascension, and we lost all contact with her ever since. Old Man Ji announced that she was dead for fear of losing face!"

"The few of us old men were the only ones left who knew of these truths. We just don't talk about it, since there's not much merit in digging up each other's shameful pasts."

When Lord Zeng shared about his past, he shared it calmly, like he was talking about someone else's gossip and scandal. However, not the same could be said for Jiang Hongyan. She had just heard of an astonishing truth, that her mother from her previous life had not died. Instead, she had disappeared on the Road of Heavenly Ascension, and no one had seen her ever again.

"Hongyan, if you want to find her, I'll go with you!" Xu Que comforted her upon seeing her expression. He took her hand into his own.

Jiang Hongyan, however, merely shook her head in disagreement. "Matters of my past life, in the end, have got little to do with the present me. Even in my past life, I had not seen her once except for when I was born. Just small, little memory remnants only tied us. She had chosen to step onto the Road of Heavenly Ascension alone, and that meant that she had put down all of her longings. Even if I went to look for her, it would be meaningless, and nothing would change."

With these words, Jiang Hongyan looked into Xu Que's eyes. She made a cute, light smile. "She walks on her way, and I will walk on mine. On the road that I wish to take, I only wished for you by my side!"

Xu Que beamed widely. He nodded. "Okay, I'll listen to you. We won't look for her on the Road of Heavenly Ascension. Let's return to the Four Great Continents then!"

"You can't!" Suddenly, Lord Zeng interrupted them. "Little friend, I'm afraid that both of you have no choice but to go to the Road of Heavenly Ascension!"

Chapter 845: Let's Make Some Trouble!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Huh?" Xu Que wasn't quite sure that he had heard that correctly.

Jiang Hongyan was also slightly astonished, and both of them looked at Lord Zeng.

Lord Zeng shook his head and chuckled, "Did you two think that you could return to the Four Great Continents with this Immortal Hall? You can't. The reason why you could travel here from the Four Great Continents was that back then, the Xuanzhen Continent had not activated its Sky Formation. Once the Sky Formation is activated, it would seal off all the voids within the Xuanzhen Continent, preventing enemies from invading and also stopping people from within the Xuanzhen Continent from leaving!"

Lord Zeng's smile deepened, "You little fella had created such a huge ruckus, and the Immortal Hall is in this little lady's possession. Old Man Ji had long activated the Sky Formation to stop you both from escaping! That would explain it. I was just wondering why the Sky Formation was suddenly enabled on my way back, but now I know. He did it to deal with you both!"

Crap!

Xu Que glared till his eyes almost popped out. He had not expected the Emperor to have such a move up his sleeve!

Jiang Hongyan was also at a loss, obviously not knowing that something like that existed.

"Little friend, listen to me. Before Old Man Ji reaches here, go onto the Road of Heavenly Ascension to tide this over. Wait for me to achieve a breakthrough in my cultivation stage. I promise to step up and ensure your safety!" Lord Zeng smiled like a crafty merchant.

Xu Que had finally gotten his drift. Lord Zeng was, in fact, reminding him to hand over that hamburger!

"I say, Fat Buddha, tell it straight out to me. You want my hamburger! Is there a need to beat around the bush to remind me about that?" Xu Que asked distastefully while confounded, and even called Lord Zeng by his nickname.

Lord Zeng paid him no mind and said kindly, "If you could help me in my breakthrough, I would owe you a favor, and you could use it to return to the Four Great Continents! But before that, you should still avoid all the trouble by going to the Road of Heavenly Ascension."

"Why? My hamburger can make you break through your current cultivation stage instantly. Listen well. You could break through instantly!" Xu Que frowned. Now, he just wanted to return to the Four Great Continents for Secluded Meditation, not go to some Road of Heavenly Ascension.

"Little friend, that is precisely the reason why I need sufficient time to make preparations! Once I take that step, I would need to undergo that final Immortal Attainment Tribulation. I would need to bear it in my peak condition," Lord Zeng answered wistfully.

As of right now, he was not yet confident that he could survive the final Immortal Attainment Tribulations. Therefore, he would need this period to adjust his body and mind, until he was the most confident and had a powerful Taoist Connotation. Until he was sure that he could face it in one go, he wouldn't finally take that last step!

"Goodness, why are you afraid? Just stand atop the pagoda and shout a few times that you are the greatest! I assure you that you would be confident from head to toe! Or should I give you some Kidney Treasure Pieces, to make up your kidney deficiency?" Xu Que asked with a deadpan expression.

Lord Zeng laughed and waved him away. "Little friend, a breakthrough is a matter of state of mind and is related to the strength and weakness of the Taoist Connotation. It's not something as simple as deceiving yourself that you have confidence. Wait till you reach my cultivation stage and you would know."

Upon saying that, the storage ring on Lord Zeng's fingers blinked, and he retrieved two Jade Tiles from it. "Little friend, the Road of Heavenly Ascension opened a few months back, and only cultivators beneath the Crossing Calamity Stage could enter. One of the entrances is just near the Myriad Buddhas Sect, so you could still make it if you leave now. Old Man Ji could arrive at any moment!"

"Fat Buddha, that's not the way to do things! You're so anxious to send us away. Are you afraid that he would discover that we're working together once he arrives?" Xu Que asked in jest.

But he did not want to argue with Lord Zeng. It was only natural, now that the opportunity to become an Immortal was right in front of his eyes, he would not want to risk any blows.

"All right. In that case, I'll tour around the Road of Heavenly Ascension and look for some enlightenment. Meanwhile, doing Secluded Meditation on the way, that sounds like a good plan too!" Xu Que took the two Jade Tiles in the end; they were the Teleportation Emblem that would take them into the Road of Heavenly Ascension.

He and Jiang Hongyan had nowhere to run if the Emperor truly blew his top. It would be no use even if they went to the turf of the Heaven Orcs Tribe, as they would most probably team up to find them. In that case, they might as well make a trip to the Road of Heavenly Ascension, where they might obtain some enlightenment. The next time they returned, they might be able to finish off the Emperor right away!

"Little friend, trusting me would be the right decision. With such Kismet, the two of you would be sure to obtain bountiful results from the Road of Heavenly Ascension!" Lord Zeng said with a genuine smile.

Xu Que cut the chit chat, waved his hand, and took out a pill-refining furnace. Inside were the freshly made Spicy Strips and a New Orleans Grilled Drumstick Burger hidden within a Tupperware.

"This pot of freshly made Spicy Strips, guess it will be my birthday present for the little Princess. As for this thing, eat it soon. May you become an Immortal, no, a Buddha, by the next time we meet!" Xu Que took Jiang Hongyan's hand and left, without further ado.

"Thank you, little friend! If I succeed, I will keep my promise and send you both safely back to the Four Great Continents for sure!" Lord Zeng gestured thanks, then shifted his gaze to the Tupperware, both hands shaking.

So this box is the Divine item that could help him break through in an instant?

But it looked so hard. Would it taste good?

…..

Once they left the pagoda, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan concealed their figures and auras as they quietly departed the Myriad Buddhas Sect. They stopped when they reached a desolate desert.

"Little Missy, what do you think? Do we go to the Road of Heavenly Ascension?" Xu Que asked Jiang Hongyan, a smile on his face.

Since Lord Zeng told them to go to the Road of Heavenly Ascension, Jiang Hongyan had not spoken a word. Therefore, he did not know if she was willing to go and had avoided asking her till now. If she seemed reluctant, Xu Que would never mention the Road of Heavenly Ascension ever again.

Jiang Hongyan teased him instead. "Little one, can't you decide on such a small matter?"

"Of course I can! Let's go. Big brother Xu Que will take you to make some trouble…pooh, no, take you to explore the land!" As he said that, Xu Que took her little hands into his own domineeringly and swept away to the distance. As per Lord Zeng's instructions, Xu Que found the entrance to the Road of Heavenly Ascension easily.

Although the Road of Heavenly Ascension had been open for several months, there were still many cultivators' activities at this remote entrance. Some had just exited, while others prepared to enter; more people had wanted to pick up cheap goods or do business here or even rob those who had just come out.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan had modified their appearances and disguised themselves as ordinary cultivators. They then stepped directly toward the entrance. Although it was called an entrance, it looked more like a Teleportation Spell. The core of the spell was a glittering shiny plane. It rippled and reflected light like the surface of a lake.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan both took out their Jade Tiles and crushed them. They immediately felt the pull of that plane of glittering light dragging them into the portal.

Up until they both disappeared, nobody had paid particular attention to them. Cultivators entered every day, and it was the norm.

…..

At this moment, it was as if Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan had stepped into the Void Tunnel for a second time. Their surroundings were pitch black, and their bodies were pushed forward, very much like back when they came to the Xuanzhen Continent from the Four Great Continents. Just that with a Jade Tile in their hands, they did not feel the dominant tearing power within the void.

The journey was safe and stable, and a few moments later, a light the size of a piece of rice appeared before their eyes. They blinked, and the white light suddenly magnified. With another blink, both Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan stepped onto the hard ground together. A faint, but comforting, fragrance surrounded them. Xu Que could not distinguish if it came from Jiang Hongyan or the flora around them.

The Spiritual Qi in the air was abundant, even more so than in the South Continent Mystery Land. Xu Que immediately confirmed that this was an optimal location for Secluded Meditation.

If he could cultivate for two or three years in this area, he was confident that he could press himself to break through the Crossing Calamity Stage. Of course, if there were people who were blind enough to harass him and offer their lives, then there was no need to cultivate, he might even break into the Great Vehicle Stage!

By then, his would be an unrivaled existence even without a Celestial Artifact. When he met the Emperor again, he would pin him down onto the floor and punch the life out of him!

"Quick! Surround it; don't let it escape!"

There seemed to be a commotion from far away, with yelling and shouting in the distance. It looked like someone was chasing someone else down.

"Quick, to the front! Block his way!"

"Crap, how dare it piss on top of our heads! It's asking for death!"

"This odor from the dog piss is so unbearable and boils my blood! How shameless it must be to call itself a wolf!"

"Senior Brother has instructed that we must catch it today! Even if it's a wolf, we will make dog meat soup out of it!"

Chapter 846: There's A Dog Called Buttface!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Hmm?" Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan looked at each other and found the same shocked expression on each other's faces. They were extremely surprised!

Judging from the voices they had heard from far away, they had mentioned a dog, dog piss, and then a wolf! Don't these descriptions all point to Buttface? How could you find another dog in this world, one that looked like a dog yet claimed itself to be a wolf, one that dares to take a piss on another's head, except for Buttface?

But that can't be. They are on the damn Road of Heavenly Ascension while Buttface should still be in the Four Great Continents. How did he even manage to get onto the Road of Heavenly Ascension?

"Do you think that it's Buttface?" Jiang Hongyan asked Xu Que, slightly surprised.

If even Jiang Hongyan had thought of Buttface when she heard people talking, Xu Que was now about 80 percent sure that his guess was correct.

"Come on. Let's take a look!" Xu Que immediately strode toward all the commotion with Jiang Hongyan.

Very quickly, Xu Que saw a group of Form Synthesis Stage cultivators sprinting at full speed on an ancient path right before them. Among them, there were several cultivators with wet hair that reeked of a disgusting odor, fury evident on their faces.

As far as they could see, all that was around was this group of cultivators running haphazardly. Buttface was nowhere to be seen.

"What happened, my fellow cultivators? I think I heard something about you guys chasing a dog?" Xu Que stopped one of the cultivators – one who was not drenched in piss – and asked in a genuinely kind manner.

This cultivator was not bent on chasing the dog, and so he decided to entertain Xu Que's question. He answered with slight exasperation, "We were resting under the tree when it happened. Who would have thought that a dog would appear atop the tree and suddenly piss all over us! As it did that, it screamed that it would soon become an Immortal! Some of my Senior Brothers, unfortunately, got drenched. That's why they are all furious."

"What? Such a shameless dog exists? Tell me quickly, my friend, its appearance and characteristics. I shall lend a helping hand!" Xu Que pounded his chest and nobly offered to help.

Surprised, the young cultivator shook his head. "It looked strange and lewd, but weirdly enough it did look kind of like a wolf. But it ran like a dog and darted off fast."

"Are there any other characteristics? Like addressing himself as 'Your Holiness' or something like that?" Xu Que asked.

The young cultivator was alarmed. "How…how did you know?"

"I guessed! All right, you should continue chasing that dog!" Xu Que chuckled. He took up Jiang Hongyan's hand and left without looking back.

It should be evident by now that he was 100 percent sure of his assumption. The dog that the group of cultivators was chasing after must be Buttface! At any other time, Xu Que would have left him; he wouldn't die that easily anyway. With that terrifying body of his, even a cultivator at the peak of the Great Vehicle Stage could not lay a scratch on him!

But the situation is different now. If Buttface did come over from the Four Great Continents, it meant that an entrance had also opened up over there! With that in mind, they might be able to return to the Four Great Continents by retracing the route Buttface had used to enter. That was why they had to find Buttface immediately.

The Road of Heavenly Ascension is vast and expansive, with many routes and belts still unexplored. While Buttface had just appeared, he might have already run to somewhere far. "It will not be easy to find him." Jiang Hongyan reminded him softly. She had some vague understanding of the Road of Heavenly Ascension. She thought that the chances of finding Buttface in here were quite slim.

On the contrary, Xu Que brushed it off. "Rest assured! If anything, Buttface's character was petty and spiteful. He might look like a cowardly dog, but he had always been a revengeful soul. I'm sure that he would not run far. I bet he's currently seeking a chance to pay those cultivators back!"

"We'll wait for him here then." Jiang Hongyan nodded.

"Yeah, we'll have to wait, but not passively! Looking for a person – no, a dog – requires spreading the call for a search far and wide!" Xu Que smiled. With a massive swing of his arm, he pulled out an enormous loudspeaker from his pants. After some fiddling, he had set up the main loudspeaker by the path and installed some supplementary speakers. He made sure to arrange them following a Propagation Formation.

Then, with a cracking sound, Xu Que pressed the power button. All of the speakers trembled instantly and amplified his infectious voice!

"Everybody, do you know how to rap freestyle?"

"Yo! Yo! There's a dog called Buttface, pretending to be a wolf every day, but he's really just a coward, who can't stop calling himself 'Your Holiness'! I've dissed every word he spits out. Please cut his tongue out when you see him! Yeah, yeah, my name is I'M SO COOL, I repeat nothing I've said before, hope that you guys would give me a wave of monthly tickets and I'll promise to update more! Use more shampoo when you shower, time's running out, so I'm gonna stop!"

Almost instantly, Xu Que's freestyle rap echoed all across the whole area. It spread in an infinite loop through the loudspeaker and was further amplified by the Propagation Formation. Cultivators around the area stopped in their tracks and looked at Xu Que, unable to react. Then, their heads could not help but bounce with the rhythm.

Somewhere, further along, cultivators who were casually strolling were confronted by the impromptu freestyle rap. Then, they too began to nod their heads with the beat. Those who were more active even tossed their hands skywards and started to walk with the beat! Even further down the path, in a patch of withered grass, a dog suddenly sprang up from underneath. Its two lantern-like eyes sprang open as it scanned its surroundings.

"Crap, why does that sound so much like that lad? Crap, how dare he curse me! Crap, why did it sound so addictive! Crap, YO! YO! YO!"

He shouted and swung his head about, then from its belly, fished out the recorder that Xu Que gave him years ago. It then started to search for similar songs.

As it listened to the song, it quickly rushed toward where the freestyle rap music was.

… …

At the same time, Xu Que was satisfied with the results. When he returned to Jiang Hongyan, he joked, "Little Missy, how was my freestyle rap? It's cool, isn't it?"

Jiang Hongyan could not hold back her laughter. She asked, "Where did you learn strange stuff like this?"

"I learned it in my hometown!" Xu Que chirped.

"Hometown?" Jiang Hongyan pondered for a second. She had heard Xu Que mention before that his hometown was not the Five Elements Mountain. It was somewhere further away, but she had not heard him talk about where exactly it was.

Xu Que smiled, his gaze deep with affection. He saw eye to eye with Jiang Hongyan, "There will be a day when I will bring you back to my home. We will have a grand wedding, and I'll make sure everyone comes to witness our great marriage. The whole world will offer us her best blessings!"

"Okay!" Jiang Hongyan glowed. Even with her modified appearance, at this moment, she was so dazzlingly beautiful that she was the prettiest woman in the whole world.

The two of them stared into each other's eyes, and Xu Que moved closer, attempting to steal a kiss with this perfect chance.

"Senior brother, senior brother, come over quick! We found that dog!" Suddenly, someone yelled from a distance. Both Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan reacted quickly at his words. Upon exchanging a glance, they swept forward with tacit understanding. A moment later, they finally saw that familiar dog.

It was undoubtedly Buttface!

Right now, some cultivators surrounded Buttface, who stood on both hind legs like a human. Its front legs waved to the beat while it chanted in freestyle, "YO! YO! Come over if you dare, Your Holiness will beat you to death!"

"Hmph! Yo, my ass! Trying to bluff your way out of this? Since you delivered yourself to our doorstep, you're not getting away!"

"Stay still and keep your mouth shut! Wait till our Senior Brother comes back; he would skin you alive!" The cultivators told Buttface coldly.

Buttface, on the other hand, seemed as if he could not break free from his newfound freestyle rapping addiction. He continued to wave his two front legs and sing proudly, "Your Holiness won't keep his mouth shut, he'll scold you if he wants! Bite me if you got guts! YO! YO! Your stupid head is like a ball, see me kick it to the department store. I'll buy a balloon in the department store, your mother's stupid head, that's what I'll buy!"

Chapter 847: Buttface's Amazing Gift!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Holy crap!

Xu Que was shocked by Buttface's rhyming freestyle.

He even knows the department store! Where did he learn that?

Then he looked down and saw a tape recorder nestled in Buttface's paws.

Now I know the answer!

Xu Que realized that Buttface had found these songs on the tape recorder. Then he had started to show off his newly learned skill. The cultivators had been annoyed by Buttface. Several of them had tried to kill Buttface with magic arts.

Buttface, hair standing on end, jumped up and was about to run away. His eyes were fixed on Xu Que. The next moment, an amazed expression appeared on his face, making him look like an emoji. Then, he started to curse, "Holy crap! Little brat, why do you stand there watching me? Come and help me!"

"Hey! What are you going to do? Don't come any closer. I suggest you stay away from me. See that guy? He is my little brother, who can kill ten people with one punch!"

"Damn! How did you see through my disguise?" Xu Que was surprised. Jiang Hongyan and he had changed their appearances. He didn't expect Buttface would recognize him immediately.

His dog eyes are awesome, and his sense of smell!

"Stop your nonsense! Do you think you can avoid being recognized by me through a disguise? It's useless! An extraordinary man like you will always be so shiny and dazzling like a firefly in the night wherever you go!" Buttface, who was being chased helter-skelter, tried to run up to Xu Que. But he was constantly being obstructed by the cultivators.

"Wow, awesome!" Xu Que was so happy, for Buttface seldom flattered him. As the old saying goes, in desperation, a dog will not only leap over a wall, but also speak his mind!

"Come on, I'm dying!" Buttface shouted.

"Do you have freestyle for this?" Xu Que, who was not in a hurry, stood there and asked.

Buttface was so angry that he shouted immediately, "Yo, Yo, Xu Que is a lady-killer, these people try to be my murderer! How could you be an onlooker? Come and kill these mothers, for this is not a trifling matter!"

Snigger!

Xu Que laughed, for he didn't expect that Buttface had this amazing gift!

"Hongyan, how do you like it?" Xu Que asked as he looked at Jiang Hongyan with a smile.

Jiang Hongyan was shocked a bit. Then she said, shaking her head with a faint smile, "I can't quite understand that!"

"It's OK. Just tell me your feeling about his freestyle!" Xu Que said with a smile.

"…I think it is OK!" Jiang Hongyan said thoughtfully after a short consideration.

"I don't think it is OK!" Xu Que shook his head.

Hearing that, Buttface shouted angrily, "This is not fair!"

"OK, that's enough, stop your nonsense!" Xu Que laughed as he dashed forward like a phantom.

Like a bolt of lightning, he moved through the cultivators and appeared in front of Buttface instantly. All the cultivators were stunned by his speed.

"Yo, Yo, Buttface, Buttface, just come with me!" Xu Que started his impromptu rap as he patted Buttface's head.

Buttface walked away, following Xu Que delightedly as he sang loudly like a crow, "Let's go, let's go, this time I owe you!"

The cultivators were dumbfounded as they looked at Xu Que and Buttface as if they had run across two idiots. When they realized Xu Que was about to take Buttface away, they shouted angrily, "Stop!"

"My fellow cultivator, what are you going to do?" They stopped Xu Que and asked.

"You look strange here. I guess you are newcomer, right? I suggest you stay away from this issue in this place, otherwise, you will have to face the consequences!" One of the cultivators said, as he put his hand on his sword hilt and looked at Xu Que coldly.

Xu Que said with a smile, "As a member of the Exploding Heavens Faction, I'm not afraid of any consequences!"

Then, he attacked with his palm directly.

Boom!

A cloud of magnificent strength gushed forward abruptly. The cultivators at the Form Synthesis Stage were blown away as if they had been hit by a mountain. Then, they fell on the big trees behind them heavily and started to spit blood.

Crack!

The big trees were broken by them. The cultivators turned pale from terror.

How formidable his power is!

He is a cultivator at the Form Synthesis Stage like us, but why is he so powerful?

"You can show due respect to the Exploding Heavens Faction by forgetting what happened today. And you should be grateful for this!" Xu Que left with Buttface and Jiang Hongyan slowly, showing his unfathomable figure to the cultivators after saying those words.

The cultivators didn't dare stop Xu Que. All of them had to make way because they were terrified. Besides Xu Que's horrible strength, they were also terrified by Jiang Hongyan. After all, cultivators at the Crossing Calamity Stage were at the top of the food chain in the Road of Heavenly Ascension.

As Xu Que, Jiang Hongyan, and Buttface went further and further along the Road of Heavenly Ascension, the cultivators who traveled together with them became fewer and fewer. Some cultivators had traveled deeper into this area, while others were still wandering around at the entrance. Also, some had closed their eyes and become corpses in the Road of Heavenly Ascension! This was quite normal in the World of cultivators.

Xu Que walked slowly on the road. When there were no other cultivators who traveled together with them, he grabbed Buttface's collar abruptly and shouted, "Buttface, I asked you to take them to the Mystery Land in the South Continent. Why are you here?"

Buttface was shocked and retorted immediately, "Damn! How do you have the nerve to say that? I've already taken them to the Mystery Land. Do you know how boring that place is? Especially Duan Jiude's Master, who is absolutely a madwoman. She sang Love In A Lifetime every day! If I didn't run away, I would have been driven mad by her!"

Buttface paused a bit, and continued to say with a smile of schadenfreude, "Oh, Duan Jiude is in serious trouble now! He planned to run out with me. But I kicked him back halfway. Then, he was captured by his Master, who threw him into the forbidden area of the Mystery Land. I guess he will suffer a lot this time!"

"Hah-hah, really?" Xu Que laughed with smug pleasure after hearing that.

This is really exciting news!

"Buttface, well done! Come on and give me five!"

"OK!"

Clap!

"By the way, Buttface, where did you kick? Did you kick his vital part?"

"Certainly, I had planned that kick for several months! It is a pity you were not there. Duan Jiude almost cried because of the pain.…"

…

Jiang Hongyan, who was standing beside them, had been totally surprised by their reaction. One second ago, they were shouting at each other angrily. The next moment, they started to talk and grin cheekily. Jiang Hongyan really didn't know what to say.

However, when they started to talk about other topics, Jiang Hongyan said as she shook her head with a smile, "OK, it's not a good time for small talk now!"

"As you wish, Holy Senior!" Buttface straightened his body and said, looking at Jiang Hongyan in reverence.

Xu Que's lips twitched.This stupid dog is still planning to become a Prime Minister by flattering Jiang Hongyan!

"Buttface, could you give us a detailed description of how you came to this place?" Jiang Hongyan asked with a faint smile.

"Of course, Holy Senior! Actually, this is a long story, which should be started from my birth.…" Buttface was about to narrate his glorious experience in detail, so that he could leave a good impression on the Holy Senior.

Bang!

Before Buttface finished his words, Xu Que hit his forehead directly.

"Ouch! Little brat, what are you doing?"

"Stop your nonsense, or I'll kill you! Just cut to the chase and tell us how you came here!"

"I came here on foot! Ouch! It hurts! Don't beat me! I will tell you everything! Actually, I went to the East Continent three months ago.…"

…

…

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COMMENT FIRSTRate this chapterVote with Power StoneChapter 848: Extraordinary Kismet!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Buttface said he went back to the East Continent out of sheer boredom and planned to cultivate justice and save people from suffering. However, he found the East Continent, which was full of evil, to be hopeless. So, he went to the Celestial Burial Valley to relieve his boredom. On the spur of the moment, he entered the Celestial Burial Valley and tried to check whether a Celestial was really buried there.

He never expected he was walking into a killing spell Array, which was full of dangerous Void Cracks. Generally speaking, a Void Crack could be used to travel between two places like the teleportation device. However, the Void Cracks that were as large as needles or swords were extremely dangerous for cultivators. Once a cultivator was hit by a Void Crack, part of its body would be teleported to another place, no matter how powerful the cultivator's physique was!

Therefore, Buttface was in a fluster. At last, he exploded hundreds of his magic artifacts to enlarge the Void Crack into a cave. Then, he jumped into the cave. The next moment, he appeared on the Road of Heavenly Ascension.

"Alas, I didn't expect to be bullied by human beings on the Road of Heavenly Ascension as I was a wise and majestic wolf! My life was really miserable in these last months!"

"When I tried to beg for food from them, they drove me away. In order to avoid defecating indiscriminately, I peed on a tree, but I was still attacked by them. This is really a vicious world without any justice!" Buttface said sadly as he looked at Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan as if he wanted to receive comfort from them.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan exchanged eye contact with wry smiles as they shook their heads. As Buttface said, he came to this place from a Void Crack accidentally, which meant the entrance to the Road of Heavenly Ascension was not in the Celestial Burial Valley. Therefore, they couldn't go back to the Four Continents through the same Void Crack that Buttface had gotten here with.

After all, void was something illusory, abstruse, and unintelligible for almost everybody. Technically, if Buttface could come to the Road of Heavenly Ascension through a Void Crack, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan should also be able to go back to the Four Continents through it. However, the problem was they didn't know how to go back to the Four Continents even if they could tear the void apart.

The reckless entry into a Void Crack was just like jumping into a vast ocean. Without navigation, they would only go with the tides and currents, and nobody knew where the tides and currents would take them.

"Damn! Why are you looking at each other? What I need is your consolation!" Buttface shouted immediately as he couldn't stand being neglected by them.

Jiang Hongyan smiled but said nothing.

Xu Que also didn't want to talk to Buttface. He had thought Buttface would bring them some good news. But it turned out they still couldn't go back to the Four Continents! Buttface is really good for nothing!

"Hey, little brat! Don't clam up on me! Let's have freestyle! Yo! Yo! I look up at the sky, the moon is so high.… Crap! Wrong lyrics! Hey, don't go! Where are you going? Are you going to have dinner? Wait for me!"

….

At last, Xu Que continued to move forward along the Road of Heavenly Ascension together with Jiang Hongyan and Buttface. Since they had arrived in this place, they hadn't come across any adventures. They couldn't return empty-handed. Maybe they could find some good opportunities or fortunes here. However, the Road of Heavenly Ascension had been opened for many years. Almost all opportunities or fortunes had already been taken away.

The entire place was quite desolate. It was nothing extraordinary except for its intense Spiritual Qi. However, they could see fighting marks everywhere. People would fight because of small conflicts or precious items! Xu Que didn't even find an herb, let alone opportunities or fortunes.

They wandered all around in this area. At last, they walked through an open grassland and stopped in front of a waterfall.They didn't find any trace of cultivators here. It was a quiet and picturesque place, where colorful butterflies were flying around.

"Wait, there is a cave behind the waterfall!" Buttface said, pointing at the waterfall.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan turned around and found a small cave behind the waterfall. It was so cleverly hidden that nobody could see it without careful observation!

"It seems nobody has entered this cave before. Let's just have a look. Maybe we can really find something inside!" Xu Que said as he looked at Jiang Hongyan joyfully.

Jiang Hongyan nodded her head and walked toward the waterfall following Xu Que.

Buttface brought up the rear as he looked around carefully. In case of any danger, he would be the first one to run away!

However, the cave was inexplicably quiet. Xu Que, who walked at the front, entered the cave smoothly without even finding a protective spell. After that, a cool breeze caressed his cheeks. The air in the cave was filled with a delicate fragrance, which was so refreshing.

"What is that?"

At this time, Jiang Hongyan, who was behind Xu Que, also sensed the refreshing breeze, which surprised her a bit.

She looked around and fixed her eyes on the small lake in the center of the cave. Then, she said in surprise, "It appears to be…the Soul Marrow. How could so many Soul Marrows be stored here?"

"The Soul Marrow?" Xu Que, who was also surprised, looked at that milky lake.

Ding! "Soul Marrow is detected. Should the System start the extraction?"

The System's warning tone echoed in Xu Que's mind as a text box appeared in front of his eyes.

[Soul Marrow]: A condensation of the Heavens and Earth's essences, it could only be generated in a place with special topography after many years.

Effect: It could clear the user's mind during cultivation. It could accelerate the cultivation speed of Soul Strength and Taoist Connotation 30 percent and will also solidify them. Also, it could be used in Alchemy!

"Wow, it is awesome!" Xu Que's eyes lit up immediately.

This could be the so-called good luck! In the Road of Heavenly Ascension where countless cultivators had explored, they managed to find a place with abundant Soul Marrows, which hadn't been discovered by others apparently, by just wandering around.

"It seems what Lord Zeng said was correct! Little girl, your kismet is really extraordinary!" Xu Que said as he looked at Jiang Hongyan with a smile.

Jiang Hongyan also replied with a smile, "Your kismet is also marvelous!"

Xu Que was shocked by her reply. Then, he realized Jiang Hongyan was talking about how he got direction by throwing a shoe! However, the point was he didn't activate his Lucky Aura just now. They could find this place probably because of Jiang Hongyan's extraordinary kismet!

"Little brat, this is a perfect place for secluded cultivation. These Soul Marrows are enough to support our secluded cultivation for decades. I could also take this opportunity to condense that strand of soul which was taken away!" Jiang Hongyan said calmly with a faint smile. The newly found precious item didn't cause any mood swing to her. It seemed all these precious items were quite common for her.

Xu Que was impressed by her words. If he performed secluded cultivation here, he would reach the Crossing Calamity Stage in two or three years and his Taoist Connotation would be stronger. Then, he would be able to confront the Emperor who had two Celestial Artifacts confidently!

However, according to his style, it was impossible for him to do nothing in the Road of Heavenly Ascension, which was full of uncertainties. Without creating some troubles, he would feel uncomfortable!

At this time, Buttface sneaked into the cave. When he saw the lake of the Soul Marrow, he shouted immediately as he rushed toward it. Howl! "Little brat, I didn't expect you could find such a good place! Awesome! I will swim in that lake with the wolf paddle!"

Chapter 848: Extraordinary Kismet!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Buttface said he went back to the East Continent out of sheer boredom and planned to cultivate justice and save people from suffering. However, he found the East Continent, which was full of evil, to be hopeless. So, he went to the Celestial Burial Valley to relieve his boredom. On the spur of the moment, he entered the Celestial Burial Valley and tried to check whether a Celestial was really buried there.

He never expected he was walking into a killing spell Array, which was full of dangerous Void Cracks. Generally speaking, a Void Crack could be used to travel between two places like the teleportation device. However, the Void Cracks that were as large as needles or swords were extremely dangerous for cultivators. Once a cultivator was hit by a Void Crack, part of its body would be teleported to another place, no matter how powerful the cultivator's physique was!

Therefore, Buttface was in a fluster. At last, he exploded hundreds of his magic artifacts to enlarge the Void Crack into a cave. Then, he jumped into the cave. The next moment, he appeared on the Road of Heavenly Ascension.

"Alas, I didn't expect to be bullied by human beings on the Road of Heavenly Ascension as I was a wise and majestic wolf! My life was really miserable in these last months!"

"When I tried to beg for food from them, they drove me away. In order to avoid defecating indiscriminately, I peed on a tree, but I was still attacked by them. This is really a vicious world without any justice!" Buttface said sadly as he looked at Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan as if he wanted to receive comfort from them.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan exchanged eye contact with wry smiles as they shook their heads. As Buttface said, he came to this place from a Void Crack accidentally, which meant the entrance to the Road of Heavenly Ascension was not in the Celestial Burial Valley. Therefore, they couldn't go back to the Four Continents through the same Void Crack that Buttface had gotten here with.

After all, void was something illusory, abstruse, and unintelligible for almost everybody. Technically, if Buttface could come to the Road of Heavenly Ascension through a Void Crack, Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan should also be able to go back to the Four Continents through it. However, the problem was they didn't know how to go back to the Four Continents even if they could tear the void apart.

The reckless entry into a Void Crack was just like jumping into a vast ocean. Without navigation, they would only go with the tides and currents, and nobody knew where the tides and currents would take them.

"Damn! Why are you looking at each other? What I need is your consolation!" Buttface shouted immediately as he couldn't stand being neglected by them.

Jiang Hongyan smiled but said nothing.

Xu Que also didn't want to talk to Buttface. He had thought Buttface would bring them some good news. But it turned out they still couldn't go back to the Four Continents! Buttface is really good for nothing!

"Hey, little brat! Don't clam up on me! Let's have freestyle! Yo! Yo! I look up at the sky, the moon is so high.… Crap! Wrong lyrics! Hey, don't go! Where are you going? Are you going to have dinner? Wait for me!"

….

At last, Xu Que continued to move forward along the Road of Heavenly Ascension together with Jiang Hongyan and Buttface. Since they had arrived in this place, they hadn't come across any adventures. They couldn't return empty-handed. Maybe they could find some good opportunities or fortunes here. However, the Road of Heavenly Ascension had been opened for many years. Almost all opportunities or fortunes had already been taken away.

The entire place was quite desolate. It was nothing extraordinary except for its intense Spiritual Qi. However, they could see fighting marks everywhere. People would fight because of small conflicts or precious items! Xu Que didn't even find an herb, let alone opportunities or fortunes.

They wandered all around in this area. At last, they walked through an open grassland and stopped in front of a waterfall.They didn't find any trace of cultivators here. It was a quiet and picturesque place, where colorful butterflies were flying around.

"Wait, there is a cave behind the waterfall!" Buttface said, pointing at the waterfall.

Xu Que and Jiang Hongyan turned around and found a small cave behind the waterfall. It was so cleverly hidden that nobody could see it without careful observation!

"It seems nobody has entered this cave before. Let's just have a look. Maybe we can really find something inside!" Xu Que said as he looked at Jiang Hongyan joyfully.

Jiang Hongyan nodded her head and walked toward the waterfall following Xu Que.

Buttface brought up the rear as he looked around carefully. In case of any danger, he would be the first one to run away!

However, the cave was inexplicably quiet. Xu Que, who walked at the front, entered the cave smoothly without even finding a protective spell. After that, a cool breeze caressed his cheeks. The air in the cave was filled with a delicate fragrance, which was so refreshing.

"What is that?"

At this time, Jiang Hongyan, who was behind Xu Que, also sensed the refreshing breeze, which surprised her a bit.

She looked around and fixed her eyes on the small lake in the center of the cave. Then, she said in surprise, "It appears to be…the Soul Marrow. How could so many Soul Marrows be stored here?"

"The Soul Marrow?" Xu Que, who was also surprised, looked at that milky lake.

Ding! "Soul Marrow is detected. Should the System start the extraction?"

The System's warning tone echoed in Xu Que's mind as a text box appeared in front of his eyes.

[Soul Marrow]: A condensation of the Heavens and Earth's essences, it could only be generated in a place with special topography after many years.

Effect: It could clear the user's mind during cultivation. It could accelerate the cultivation speed of Soul Strength and Taoist Connotation 30 percent and will also solidify them. Also, it could be used in Alchemy!

"Wow, it is awesome!" Xu Que's eyes lit up immediately.

This could be the so-called good luck! In the Road of Heavenly Ascension where countless cultivators had explored, they managed to find a place with abundant Soul Marrows, which hadn't been discovered by others apparently, by just wandering around.

"It seems what Lord Zeng said was correct! Little girl, your kismet is really extraordinary!" Xu Que said as he looked at Jiang Hongyan with a smile.

Jiang Hongyan also replied with a smile, "Your kismet is also marvelous!"

Xu Que was shocked by her reply. Then, he realized Jiang Hongyan was talking about how he got direction by throwing a shoe! However, the point was he didn't activate his Lucky Aura just now. They could find this place probably because of Jiang Hongyan's extraordinary kismet!

"Little brat, this is a perfect place for secluded cultivation. These Soul Marrows are enough to support our secluded cultivation for decades. I could also take this opportunity to condense that strand of soul which was taken away!" Jiang Hongyan said calmly with a faint smile. The newly found precious item didn't cause any mood swing to her. It seemed all these precious items were quite common for her.

Xu Que was impressed by her words. If he performed secluded cultivation here, he would reach the Crossing Calamity Stage in two or three years and his Taoist Connotation would be stronger. Then, he would be able to confront the Emperor who had two Celestial Artifacts confidently!

However, according to his style, it was impossible for him to do nothing in the Road of Heavenly Ascension, which was full of uncertainties. Without creating some troubles, he would feel uncomfortable!

At this time, Buttface sneaked into the cave. When he saw the lake of the Soul Marrow, he shouted immediately as he rushed toward it. Howl! "Little brat, I didn't expect you could find such a good place! Awesome! I will swim in that lake with the wolf paddle!"