"Hongshan old man, mind waiting outside a bit? We've got some private matters to talk about."
The Five Venom Emperor and Zuo Qiyu brought Zhao Xing through the barrier into the Huailiu Courtyard—but left Emperor Hongshan standing outside.
Hongshan old man? That one made Zhao Xing's eye twitch a little. His master really was too... socially bold. Come on, the man's your guest—at least invite him in for a cup of tea.
Emperor Hongshan didn't seem bothered. He just glanced at Zhao Xing, then smiled gently. "No problem. I'll go for a walk around Coral City. When this city was first being built, it was just barren ground. This is my first time seeing it completed."
Zhao Xing shot him an apologetic look before being dragged inside by Zuo Qiyu and the Five Venom Emperor, one on each shoulder.
A shadow passed over the willow trees, and in the next instant, the three of them entered the Five Venom Emperor's inner world.
This was Zhao Xing's first time seeing his master's inner world—and it felt like the embodiment of flourishing chaos.
On just a single Realm Star, there were over one quadrillion plants.
And a lot of them were crossbred and mutated. You could often see a single plant bearing features of multiple categories at once—like herbs, woods, bamboo species, and thorny shrubs all stacked into one.
"Phylum," "class," "order," "family," "genus"—all those biological classifications were jammed together in this place. And each kind of plant brimmed with vitality, to the point it gave off an intense kind of violent beauty.
It was obvious—the Five Venom Emperor's inner world was already in the Ten Thousand Manifestations Phase, the fourth of the four stages.
Gu Luohe's inner world, on the other hand, was totally different. His Dao was clean and crystal-clear. A single Realm Star inside him usually only held one tree—but that one tree would always embody miraculous transformation.
Zhao Xing had no idea which stage Gu Luohe's inner world was in.
"Master, your inner world is magnificent! When the spiritual energy flows, it's like the whole universe is being devoured—"
Flattery, as always, was the safest path. Zhao Xing laid it on thick the second he stepped inside, shamelessly fawning like there was no tomorrow.
"Hahaha, is that so? I think so too." The Five Venom Emperor beamed, completely delighted.
Boom!
Zuo Qiyu couldn't take it anymore. He raised a finger and blasted one of the Realm Stars into dust.
"What the hell?!" The Five Venom Emperor glared at him furiously.
Zuo Qiyu said nothing. He just moved his finger over to aim at the second Realm Star.
"Alright, alright, let's get to the point!"
The Five Venom Emperor finally snapped back to business mode.
Only then did Zuo Qiyu lower his hand.
Zhao Xing, watching from the side, felt his scalp go numb. He really didn't get how these two communicated.
The Five Venom Emperor turned to Zhao Xing. "Disciple, I have something important to tell you."
"Please speak, Master."
"The Empire is doing a massive development push in the northwest. Along the Jiachen Pass route toward the Suyue Barren Domain, they've set up over thirty thousand exploration outposts."
"The military alone—just the number of armies combined—already exceeds one million. This is the largest exploration campaign since the start of the Barren Era."
Then the Five Venom Emperor started explaining everything in detail.
"As for why this exploration campaign is happening, I'm sure you already have an idea."
"The Xuanling Star Domain is undergoing Barren Domain transformation."
Zhao Xing stayed quiet, listening carefully. This was essentially the main setting lore of Star River Myriad Worlds.
The Five Venom Emperor continued, "Different factions have different views on the Barren Domain transformation. Some believe it can be stopped and cured."
"Others believe it's unstoppable, irreversible."
"If we go by our Self School's interpretation, the Barren Domain transformation means the region of the universe where the Xuanling Star Domain lies has entered the 'Extinction Phase.'"
"The Physician line's theory says that a super pathogen exists in the Xuanling Star Domain, and the Barren Domain transformation is caused by this. If the pathogen is eradicated, the region can recover."
"As for the Scholars—" The Five Venom Emperor was about to ramble again when he caught sight of Zuo Qiyu's finger twitching and instantly cut to the chase.
"In short, all the major powers now agree: If we want more habitable regions, we either manage the existing ones, or explore new unknown regions. Otherwise, when the time comes, we're all done for."
"Since the start of the Barren Era, the Empire has been doing well in both those areas. Especially in the Primordial Realm—the Shennongs deserve huge credit. That's why some say the whole Barren Domain theory doesn't hold up if you count the Empire's governance success."
"But unfortunately, our neighbors are absolute trash," the Five Venom Emperor sighed. "The demon race are complete morons—just know how to devour, don't know how to nurture. They're destroying the spiritual energy environments all over the place. And among the humans, the ancient kingdoms are all over the place. Overall, the spiritual regions are still shrinking."
"Even before the Barren Era started, the Empire was already sending Fate Officers to climb Mount Ten Directions."
"And finally, during the first era of the Barren Epoch, we got the first divination result from the mountain."
"That's when we discovered that the Suyue Barren Domain was a promising direction for exploration."
"From then on, the Empire began small-scale expeditions."
Zhao Xing nodded, finally understanding.
No wonder the Empire suddenly launched a full-scale exploration of the Suyue Barren Domain—it was because they got a precious "First Divination" from the Ten Directions Mountain during the first era of the Barren Epoch.
Mount Ten Directions was one of the ten great wonders of the Xuanling Star Domain and had a strong link to the Fate Officer profession.
It only appeared once per era.
Any Fate Officer who climbed it and performed a divination would succeed with no cost, no backlash, and no chance of being tracked.
And during the limited appearance window, the first Fate Officer to climb it would have a guaranteed 100% success rate for the First Divination.
But the time requirement was brutal.
Throughout history in the Xuanling Star Domain, those who got the First Divination were so few you could count them on your fingers.
Because it was so rare, anyone who got it never revealed the results. So no one really knew how many times it had actually happened.
And now, to think—the Empire had once received a First Divination from the Ten Directions Mountain?
"Right, with the First Divination from Mount Ten Directions as guidance, that's why the Empire didn't hesitate to pour in resources and effort," Zhao Xing thought to himself.
The Five Venom Emperor clasped his hands toward the sky. "There's a saying—if you get the First Divination from Mount Ten Directions, even becoming a god is within reach. But that legendary Fate Officer used it instead to divine the Empire's future. In doing so, he gave up his own shot at divinity. That's something truly worthy of respect."
This time, Zuo Qiyu didn't criticize the Five Venom Emperor for going off-topic. He also raised his hands in salute to the sky, as if offering distant reverence to that legendary figure.
Zhao Xing followed their lead and bowed as well.
The Five Venom Emperor didn't continue talking about Mount Ten Directions or the legendary Fate Officer. Clearly, this was still top secret information for Zhao Xing. Even as a Coral-Rank member, he was only allowed to hear a sliver of the truth.
"The contents of the First Divination are priceless."
"Originally, the Empire had planned to go it alone."
"But now that the second era of the Barren Epoch is coming to an end, the situation has changed."
"The Empire has invested so much manpower and resources that we had no choice but to bring other factions in," the Five Venom Emperor explained. "Currently, the Reincarnation Divine Palace, Primordial Hill, Origin Heaven Palace, the Ancient Kingdom Alliance of the Barren Domain, and Scholarly City—all of them have sent top-level figures to the Primordial Realm to negotiate cooperation terms."
Zhao Xing nodded slightly. Exploring unknown cosmic territories was basically a war—one that required massive upfront investment with little early return.
And on top of that, they had to manage the existing territory, resist the Barren Domain transformation, guard against demon invasion, and deal with internal human disputes. The Red Star Empire was under enormous pressure.
After the Yuanhai Ancient Kingdom incident, the pace of the Barren Domain transformation sped up—making things even worse for the Empire. Pulling in allies to help share the burden was a matter of necessity.
"So… what is the Empire offering in exchange?" Zhao Xing asked. He wanted to get a peek at the real situation from someone like the Five Venom Emperor.
"The Empire, without a doubt, retains leadership of the entire development," the Five Venom Emperor replied.
"Some factions want access to the contents of the First Divination. Ever since the beginning of the first Barren Era, the Empire has endured countless large-scale attempts to spy on or attack the fate tied to that divination."
"But thanks to the presence of the Great Derivation Divine Weapon and that legendary Fate Officer guarding the lines, no one has succeeded."
In Zhao Xing's mind, a scene began to form—countless threads of fate rushing toward the Red Star Empire from all corners of the Xuanling Star Domain, trying to pierce its defenses and seize the First Divination.
And yet the people of the Empire lived in peace, completely unaware.
"Amazing. No wonder even his name had to be erased."
"Come to think of it, back during the Yuanhai Ancient Kingdom crisis, the Empire's rapid response—was that because they were so used to fate-based attacks, and thus able to detect global shifts so quickly?" Zhao Xing guessed inwardly.
The Five Venom Emperor continued, "Since it's a partnership, of course there have to be benefits."
"The others want profits from the Empire? Then they'd better give us resources and put in the work."
"The specifics of the distribution are complicated and haven't been finalized yet, so I won't go into detail."
"In short, it's been decided that the Primordial Realm will host a battle—limited to below the Dao Domain Realm—to determine the preliminary distribution of authority."
Zhao Xing understood, but didn't know why the Five Venom Emperor was telling him all this.
Sure, he was progressing fast—but surely not enough to send him into such a major match?
Was that really why they brought him here? Then what was Zuo Qiyu here for?
The Five Venom Emperor turned to him and said, "I've told you all this because I want you to be one of the participants."
"Me?" Zhao Xing froze. They're actually sending me?
Old Zhao still had some self-awareness. Even counting the Void Straw Puppet, his overall power just barely put him at the threshold of the Life-and-Death Dao Domain Realm.
Maybe he could handle some average cultivators at that level, but against the top ones? No way. Someone like the Ocean Guardian, Lance—he'd get wrecked.
And even Lance wasn't the strongest among Life-and-Death Dao Domain cultivators.
Was the Five Venom Emperor just trying to pad his resume?
After thinking it over, Zhao Xing double-checked. "Master, with my current strength, I could probably handle some regular duel matches."
He was being honest—if this was going to be a key, deciding match, they really shouldn't be throwing him in.
The Five Venom Emperor smiled. "Don't worry. We've already picked your opponent."
Zhao Xing let out a breath of relief. "Then I'll follow Master's arrangements."
Zuo Qiyu spoke up right then, "You'll be fighting Du Yun."
Zhao Xing: "???"
The breath he'd just exhaled nearly choked him back into a coma.
I'm fighting Du Yun?
"Senior Zuo, did I hear that right? You mean the Du Yun from Origin Heaven Palace?"
"That's right. Him," the Five Venom Emperor replied, gripping Zhao Xing's shoulder. "What, scared?"
"No… I mean, I do know Du Yun, but fear isn't really the issue—" Zhao Xing forced a smile.
This wasn't about fear—it was about reality.
How the hell was he supposed to fight that guy?
Du Yun was on another level. In the entire Xuanling Star Domain, he was one of the top prodigies.
Back during the Yuanhai Ancient Kingdom conflict, Du Yun was already a Prefect—one of the top-ranked ones in Purple Divine Mansion.
During the Void God Star System exploration, Zhao Xing got a bunch of opportunities—but so did Du Yun.
In fact, Zhao Xing only managed to pay back his debt to Han Chuchen by giving her a piece of loot—a divine weapon—that Du Yun had won from among ten Origin-level divine weapons.
Not to mention, Du Yun had been cultivating at the Grand Divine Ability Realm for many years.
When they'd visited the Time Cabin, even the Emperors there had known who Du Yun was.
How was he supposed to fight that?
"As long as you're not scared," the Five Venom Emperor said with a big grin, patting Zhao Xing's shoulder. "You're both in the Origin Realm. A challenge like this is exactly what you need!"
"Your Senior Zuo came here to help you."
Without another word, Zuo Qiyu started pulling things out.
In the space where the star had just been destroyed earlier, ten times its original volume in rare treasures now materialized.
The glow of treasure essence was so bright, it nearly blinded Zhao Xing.
"Holy crap, is that the Void Spirit Coral? You cut fifteen of them?!"
"Seven-Colored Void Ancestor Mystic Crystals? Rumored to be the life origin transformed from the Void Ancestor's third reincarnation—this huge chunk, how many pieces is that worth?"
"A Celestial Demon Spirit Gourd, grown from the corpse of a celestial demon born in the Void Ancestor Star System?"
"An Imperial-grade Soul Tree? No… it's actually the heartwood of a Supreme Soul Tree that matured in the Void Ancestor Star System!"
"Star-Extinguishing Sand, Core Blood Crystals—damn, and seven pieces of Void Ancestor Shedding Bones—"
Staring at the mountain of treasures, Zhao Xing momentarily lost his composure.
And who could blame him? He was an expert in this field—he knew exactly how valuable these things were.
Too precious. Even if you sold off the entire Northern River Lord's estate, you still couldn't afford the stuff in front of him!
"Master, Senior Zuo, these… these aren't all for me, are they?" Zhao Xing's voice trembled.
"Of course. Excited?" The Five Venom Emperor grinned.
"Hmph." Zuo Qiyu's face turned sour.
Most of the items here had come from him.
Only he had the clearance to acquire them.
Zuo Qiyu was sure he'd lost his mind—how else could he have agreed to such a ridiculous request from the Five Venom Emperor?
Zhao Xing was on cloud nine.
His eyes were practically turning into treasure shapes—one second he was staring at the Celestial Demon Spirit Gourd, the next he was gawking at the Core Blood Crystals. Bliss overflowed.
"Stop grinning like a fool!"
Zuo Qiyu couldn't take it anymore. With a slap, he sent Zhao Xing and the Five Venom Emperor flying to the resource planet nearby.
"Get to work now."
"If you two waste even half a portion of the materials, you're both getting reincarnated!"
For five full years, Zhao Xing toiled away in the Five Venom Emperor's inner world, constantly under Zuo Qiyu's pressure.
The materials for the Void Straw Puppet were way too high-end. He had to go all out, pouring in everything—mind, energy, and spirit—nonstop.
But weirdly enough, this was the first time he'd worked so hard and still felt happy about it.
By the time those jagged, uneven resources had finally taken shape into a Void Straw Puppet five years later, Zhao Xing still felt like he was dreaming.
Right now, his soul was nestled inside the puppet's head, encased within the core of that Supreme Soul Tree heartwood.
The Five Venom Emperor and Zuo Qiyu stood inside the puppet's ear.
"Done yet, disciple?" the Five Venom Emperor tapped the puppet's inner ear wall. "You better get this thing moving, or the old man's really gonna kill someone!"
"Master, relax ten thousand times over!" Zhao Xing responded with absolute confidence. "I guarantee you'll be satisfied!"
Zhao Xing's eyes snapped open—and so did the eyes of the towering Void Giant.
"Huang!"
One syllable rumbled from the puppet's mouth.
The Sound of the Great Dao!
Zuo Qiyu and the Five Venom Emperor didn't hear any noise—but both of them saw a vivid scene, as if a titan had been born during the primordial chaos, letting out a roar that split the heavens.
"Yuuu—"
The green leaf that hosted the Five Venom Emperor's projection inside the Huai Liu Courtyard instantly shattered, forcing his projection to fall to the ground.
But then the ground shattered too.
Just the leftover shockwave from that single syllable pierced through the surface of Coral City, slamming into the leaves of the Primordial Divine Tree.
"Hm?"
Emperor Hongshan, who had been walking through Coral City, suddenly paused and looked down thoughtfully.
"That felt like it came from Huai Liu Courtyard—but it vanished in an instant."
"No idea what happened."
With a flicker of thought, Emperor Hongshan flew straight toward the courtyard.
The shockwave had been tiny, and the crater on the ground repaired itself quickly.
Besides Emperor Hongshan—who was incredibly attuned to the earth veins—no one else even noticed.
Back inside the Five Venom Emperor's inner world—
"That'll do. Cut it out already."
The Five Venom Emperor quickly activated the Great Dao in his inner world, locking down the area around the Void Straw Puppet. Then he looked over at Zuo Qiyu. "Envoy Zuo, what do you think? Satisfied?"
The Five Venom Emperor had never cultivated the puppet himself—he didn't understand its secrets. For something like this, only someone with real experience could judge.
And Zuo Qiyu? He was staring at the puppet, eyes frozen for a moment before finally muttering, "It'll do."
The Five Venom Emperor broke into a wide grin.
If Zuo Qiyu said "it'll do," that meant it was outstanding!
If Zhao Xing had done even slightly worse under these circumstances, Zuo Qiyu would've cursed him out on the spot.
"Envoy Zuo truly has great vision," the Five Venom Emperor chuckled. "That's why you're the Primordial Envoy."
"Scram!" Zuo Qiyu snapped, vanishing from the Five Venom Emperor's inner world.
He'd done the favor, gotten exploited, and now if he stayed any longer, he might actually lose his temper and throw hands.
As Zuo Qiyu was leaving, he happened to run into Emperor Hongshan.
"Envoy, did something just—"
Before he could finish, Zuo Qiyu disappeared.
"That's odd. What's up with Zuo Qiyu?"
Just for a second, Emperor Hongshan had sensed a wave of emotion from Zuo Qiyu.
There was comfort, anticipation… but also sorrow and melancholy.
"People from the Self School sure are complicated," he muttered, shaking his head.
He didn't overthink it. Among high-level cultivators, very few allowed their true emotions to be easily read.
Zuo Qiyu's layered emotions clearly pointed to some inner turmoil. Emperor Hongshan figured it was better not to pry.
When the Five Venom Emperor and Zhao Xing stepped out—
A figure emerged from the soil of Huai Liu Courtyard.
The Five Venom Emperor saw it and immediately exploded. "Hongshan, you old bastard—you used the Earth Listening Technique to eavesdrop?!"
"I can't stand wall-peeking bastards like you. Take this!"
Zhao Xing watched as a streak of black light shot out of the Five Venom Emperor's sleeve. He was speechless.
He really couldn't predict this man's next move at all.
Emperor Hongshan had just gotten there!
"Calm down, brother. I didn't eavesdrop," Emperor Hongshan said as the toxic vine struck what seemed to be him, only for his body to crumble into sand. His real form appeared off to the side.
Emperor Hongshan really had a good temper. He still looked kind and patient, even Zhao Xing was starting to feel a bit sorry for him.
"Master, Emperor Hongshan is known for his integrity. He'd never stoop to eavesdropping," Zhao Xing said.
The Five Venom Emperor secretly transmitted his voice, "Of course I know that. But if I don't act a little difficult, that old guy won't feel pressured to teach you sincerely. Just stay quiet and watch."
Zhao Xing blinked, then stood silently where he was.
The exchange between the two lasted only a few moves before stopping.
The Five Venom Emperor waved impatiently. "Emperor Hongshan, your Primordial Hill has its rules. If you want to take Zhao Xing in, fine—I'll give you face."
"But Zhao Xing is my disciple. If you're going to pass down teachings, then do it properly."
"Don't go half-baked with it and distract him for nothing. He doesn't have to learn it."
Emperor Hongshan clasped his hands respectfully. "I'll give it my best."
"Not your best. It has to be done!" the Five Venom Emperor growled like a villain. "I'll give you fifty years at most."
"When that time's up, if he's only learned a half-baked version, I'll abolish everything he learned from your Earthly Advantage School and go public, telling everyone you ruined my disciple."
"By then, you and Primordial Hill's reputation won't recover."
Emperor Hongshan gave a bitter smile. "As you say, fifty years."
Seeing him agree, the Five Venom Emperor returned a formal salute. Following custom, he pulled out an exchange jade token and tossed it to Emperor Hongshan.
If Emperor Hongshan ever wanted to send a disciple to learn the Self School's ways in the future, he could use this token to seek out the Five Venom Emperor.
The Huai Liu Courtyard quickly quieted down, leaving only Emperor Hongshan and Zhao Xing.
The two looked at each other. Zhao Xing cupped his fists and said, "Junior Zhao Xing greets Emperor Hongshan."
Emperor Hongshan, kind-hearted though he was, wasn't naive. Hearing Zhao Xing greet him this way, he understood the youth didn't want to appear under the name of the "Emperor of Tianning"—at least, not yet.
So Emperor Hongshan dropped the idea of reminiscing and instead accepted Zhao Xing's greeting as it was.
Then he drew an intricate mountain-shaped pattern beneath his feet and began to chant:
"Under the watch of Hongshan, witnessed by Extreme Land, I, Qiu Chongyue, the 158th Mountain Lord of Hongshan, obey the order of Primordal Hill and hereby receive the practitioner of Extreme Land."
"Zhao Xing, you shall become my nominal disciple. I will do my utmost to pass down the Dao and its methods to you for fifty years."
As his words fell, the soil beneath formed into a talisman seal filled with spiritual power, which flew toward Zhao Xing.
"Under the watch of Hongshan, witnessed by Extreme Land; disciple Zhao Xing greets the Mountain Lord. I will devote myself wholeheartedly to receiving the Dao and studying its teachings for fifty years."
Zhao Xing knelt and bowed deeply. As he straightened his back, the seal embedded itself into his forehead, marking him with a symbol of twin peaks. The formal induction process of Primordial Hill was complete.
Zhao Xing now bore the Hongshan Seal, which contained the essence and Dao principles Emperor Hongshan intended to pass on.
Emperor Hongshan stepped forward to help Zhao Xing up.
Then, with a slap to Zhao Xing's forehead—
"Boom—"
Zhao Xing was instantly pulled underground.
As he sank, he was wrapped in vast earth-vein power that soon formed into an inverted mountain peak buried deep below.
Beneath that upside-down mountain, a small palace took shape.
As Zhao Xing landed inside, he couldn't help but be shocked.
"This is the Demon God Earth Palace? Emperor Hongshan actually knows this technique? How come I never knew that?"
He was caught off guard. In his previous life, when he had researched Emperor Hongshan, there had been no mention of this secret art. Had he missed it back then? Or had something changed in this life?
If it had been any ordinary Earth Palace technique, Zhao Xing wouldn't have been this surprised.
But the Demon God Earth Palace could be cultivated all the way to the Reincarnation Realm!
It was said to have been created for imprisoning and refining the Twelve Ancient Demon Gods.
It was one of the top-tier Earth Palace arts of Primordial Hill.
Among Earth Palace techniques, the Demon God Earth Palace ranked as one of the most lethal and ferocious.
What stunned Zhao Xing was that Emperor Hongshan—a kind, gentle man—actually practiced such a savage art?
"They say training in Demon God Earth Palace requires a mountain of slaughter… hard to imagine—" Zhao Xing thought.
"It's no rumor," Emperor Hongshan's calm voice echoed in Zhao Xing's mind. "The best way to cultivate this is indeed to refine powerful beings."
"Long ago, I was soaked in blood too. The corpses of those I killed could fill a star system."
"In terms of killing, even ten Five Venom Emperors might not match me."
Zhao Xing: "..."
So even Emperor Hongshan had such a past? Quiet types going crazy really were the scariest.
"These are things of the past. No need to dwell on them today," Emperor Hongshan said plainly. "Focus on your cultivation."
With that, the Demon God Earth Palace sealed shut.
Zhao Xing also slipped into deep cultivation.
As time flowed, the Origin Realm gradually became more lively.
With various cooperative initiatives moving forward, a genius showdown was soon scheduled—and quickly drew attention.
The true purpose behind the competition wasn't openly advertised. Most people just assumed it was a standard exchange of Dao methods.
Still, it sparked intense interest among the geniuses.
Many interrupted their secluded training to come join the spectacle.
Even Yu Tianqing came running to ask Jing Yan about what was going on.
"Jing Yan, I heard a bunch of geniuses have arrived in the Origin Realm. Even people from the Reincarnation Temple. You hear about that?"
"Of course," Jing Yan nodded. "The Primordial Dojo has gotten a lot more bustling lately. A bunch of top-tier geniuses have returned."
"For example, there's You Beixuan—reputedly the top sword cultivator in the Dao Domain Realm here in the Origin Realm."
"Even twenty thousand years ago, he was a member of Coral Nine-Tier. He once killed twelve royal river demons outside of Ziwu Pass in a single battle."
"He made his name from that fight."
"I wonder who's stronger, him or the Lord of Yellow Sand Mansion," Yu Tianqing muttered. Both he and Jing Yan had met Du Yun before, and even back then, Du Yun had seemed unfathomable.
Now, after two to three thousand years, Yu Tianqing had reached the Yin-Yang Dao Domain Realm, yet Du Yun still felt just as unreachable.
"General You is indeed powerful. He and Du Yun are probably neck and neck," Jing Yan said thoughtfully. "It'd be easier to compare if they both practiced Qi Cultivation, but one's from the Qi Sect, the other from the Sword Sect—it's hard to say."
"True." Yu Tianqing nodded. "They say Du Yun cultivates the Reincarnation Chapter of the Void Ancestor, while You Beixuan trains in the Feather Emperor's Sword Technique. Both of these are secret arts passed down from the Five Emperors Era."
Both the Void Ancestor and the Feather Emperor were among the Five Emperors. Their supreme techniques—who could say which was stronger?
The Qi Sect and Sword Sect had each produced champions in different eras, even those hailed as the top martial artist of their time.
"Fights between martial artists are nothing special," Jing Yan said lazily. "It's our Mechanist battles that are really detailed and refined. The Boundless Matrix stream, the Shenluo stream, the Thousand Mechanism Formation stream, the Twelve Wandering Spirits—any one of those streams is more exciting than martial artist duels."
"I'm a Martial Mechanist. Still want to watch Du Yun and You Beixuan's fight," Yu Tianqing replied. "Just don't know when they'll clash at the Dao Field."
"Wait for it. This sudden Dao Discourse Conference definitely isn't as simple as it seems," Jing Yan mused. "Some of these fights are probably tied to deeper interests. They won't start too early."
"I'm thinking of heading to the Transmission Realm Tower. You coming?"
"Transmission Realm Tower?" Yu Tianqing shook his head. "I'll pass. That place run by the Starry Historians doesn't do much for my training."
"Damn, you're flexing again," Jing Yan groaned in frustration.
He now knew that Yu Tianqing had a powerful innate divine ability—Eye of Insightful Illusion-Breaking. With that gift boosting him, Yu Tianqing progressed quickly in every field.
Among Mechanists, he ranked solidly in the top ten.
By comparison, Jing Yan, though a prince, barely made the top one thousand, which seemed utterly average.
"I'll go find Zhao Xing. By the way, has he contacted you?"
"No." Yu Tianqing shook his head. "He's probably still in seclusion."
"Unbelievable," Jing Yan muttered, shaking his head. "How can he stay so patient?"
"Brother Zhao's dedication to cultivation is something we all should learn from," Yu Tianqing said with respect. "With his fame, and all those challengers and invitations, he actually managed to stay put and not head to the Primordial Dao Field."
"Back when he was still considered a bottom-tier figure, his name was already louder than any of the six Primordial Saint Sons. Brother Zhao's path… really hard to figure out."
In Coral City, above Huai Liu Courtyard, a small hill began to rise from the ground, as if something was about to break through the earth.
Not far away, Emperor Hongshan, who had been meditating, suddenly opened his eyes.
"Only forty-five years, and he's already breaking through. So fast."
The original plan was for fifty years, but Emperor Hongshan had only had time to focus on the core teachings.
What Zhao Xing received consisted of two parts. One was a cultivation method called Mustard Seed Mountain, the second tier of Extreme Land cultivation, also known as Extreme Land Mustard Seed Mountain.
The second was the method—Demon God Earth Palace.
By Emperor Hongshan's estimation, even making basic progress in fifty years would be difficult. But as long as Zhao Xing gained even a little, it would greatly benefit him.
By using Earth Palace and Extreme Land cultivation to broaden his foundation, Zhao Xing's future breakthrough into the Dao Domain Realm would grant him far more powerful magical force than the average genius.
"Emperor of Tianning… who exactly are you?" Emperor Hongshan murmured to himself.
Ordinary Reincarnation Realm cultivators, even if they reincarnated, weren't guaranteed to reach that realm again. Only Emperor-level beings had that confidence.
And from a person's cultivation journey, even if reborn, one could often see the traces of their past.
Emperor Hongshan had met countless people over the years. Yet he couldn't match this Emperor of Tianning's background to anyone he knew.
As he pondered, the rising mound suddenly paused, then collapsed as if the breakthrough had failed.
Emperor Hongshan looked up, and in the very next moment, a figure emerged from the fallen earth—it was Zhao Xing.
No violent burst, no shockwaves. It was this very silence that proved Zhao Xing had truly entered the door.
Zhao Xing took a step forward. The soil beneath him seemed to lift him gently as he crossed the distance to Emperor Hongshan. Yet the ground showed no trace of movement.
"Hong, many thanks for passing down your Dao and teachings," Zhao Xing bowed deeply.
Emperor Hongshan gave him a look. Within Zhao Xing's inner world, he could see a swirling energy vortex, and in its center hovered a faint image of an Earth Palace. Inside that Earth Palace stood a half-bodied phantom of a Demon God.
Emperor Hongshan nodded. "The Demon God Earth Palace has a total of twelve arts, each corresponding to one of the Twelve Ancient Demon Gods. What I taught you was the Punishment Heaven Earth Palace."
"Though I don't possess the full inheritance. If you're interested, you can come visit Primordial Hill in the future."
"Absolutely," Zhao Xing replied.
Of course he would go. Primordial Hill was home to several descendants of Ancient Demon Gods—each one of them half-divine in strength.
To advance further with the Earth Palace techniques, one had to observe them up close.
Emperor Hongshan likely taught him this art also to ensure they'd meet again—to finally unravel the mystery that puzzled him.
"Now that you've learned it, my task is done. We shall meet again."
After saying this, Emperor Hongshan vanished into the earth, leaving Coral City.
Zhao Xing cupped his fists in farewell.
Just as he straightened, a breeze drifted into Huai Liu Courtyard.
Within the wind, a figure began to take shape. A young girl in a yellow dress, round-faced like a goose egg, called out, "Junior Brother Zhao, are you out of seclusion?"
That clear, crisp voice immediately helped Zhao Xing recognize her.
It was Ai Miaomiao—one of the other two disciples taken in by the Five Venom Emperor.
He waved to open the barrier and walked out.
"Senior Sister Ai, I'm out now."
"Master wants you to head to the Primordial Dao Field right away. Du Yun and You Beixuan are about to duel on the arena."