Ancient Godly Monarch - Chapter 175

Chapter 175: Map

Within the Emperor Star Academy, inside a residence, several Elders crowded together as they looked upon the figure lying down on the bed. Worry and anxiety could be seen reflected in their eyes.

“How is he?” Ren Qianxing hurriedly asked as he saw the Elder sitting next to the bedside turning.

“Strange, strange. His life force is overwhelmingly exuberant, and there’s a powerful energy in his blood. His blood circulated within his heart, providing protection, and he’s recovering now even as we speak,” the Elder said in a low voice, his tone filled with wonder. Such a grievous injury, if it was some other cultivators who suffered from this, they would surely already be dead.

“There’s no danger to his life?” Ren Qianxing asked again.

“None. With his vitality, he only needs time before he fully recovered,” that Elder replied.

After hearing this, the Elders in the room all unclenched their fists, letting out a sigh of relief as the worries melted from their faces.

“Wentian.” Qin Yao’s tears turned into happiness. She sat at the bedside, gently stroking Qin Wentian’s forehead. Her face was tear-streaked; she had almost been frightened to death. The assailant had struck Qin Wentian in his heart.

“Everyone, disperse. Temporarily lock down this news and send men to stand guard here.” Ren Qianxing commanded. In response, the Elders left one by one. Only the Elder who was proficient in healing remained behind. Even now, he was still mumbling in amazement; how could someone at the Arterial Circulation Realm have such a level of vitality? Truly amazing.

Luo Huan walked forward with a brilliant smile etched on her face. “Wentian, Mountain has already passed on, so don’t you dare leave your Senior Sister here alone.”

After saying that, she too turned to leave. The instant she turned, her cheery smile disappeared completely. Replacing the smile was an icy cold expression—the Nine Mystical Palace, the Royal Clan of Chu…This debt of hatred just grew deeper and deeper.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed. During these three days, the conflict between the two academies escalated to an unimaginable extent. As of now, they had already stopped sending formations of Arterial Circulation Cultivators to clash. Instead, Yuanfu cultivators were commanded to directly hunt the students of the opposing academy. Hence, students at the Arterial Circulation Realm all stayed in their respective academy, not daring to go out. Once they stepped out of their zone of protection, only death awaited them.

Both the academies had already completely shred all pretense of cordiality.

Even Chu Tianjiao himself didn’t dare to move about rashly. Considering how infuriated the Emperor Star Academy was, there was a high possibility that they may assassinate him.

In these three days, news on the deaths and casualties of both sides unceasingly spread out. The most disastrous battle was when the Emperor Star Academy walked into an ambush laid by the Royal Academy. Luckily, reinforcement arrived in time, and following that battle, a total of four people at the Yuanfu level, and eight people at the Arterial Circulation level had fallen. The tempest of war has truly engulfed the entire Royal Capital.

In the Emperor Star Academy, Qin Wentian was still unconscious. At this moment, there were two extremely beautiful girls sitting by his side.

“Qingcheng, thank you for your efforts these past few days.” Qin Yao had an expression of gratitude on her face as she stared at Mo Qingcheng.

“No worries, this is what I should do. I’m really good at this.” Mo Qingcheng smiled, after which, she continued spoon-feeding Qin Wentian with medicinal soup.

Gazing at Mo Qingcheng’s side profile, Qin Yao was slightly stunned before recovering with a smile on her face. “It’d be good if only you could take care of him like this forever.”

“Haha sure, I’d love to.” Mo Qingcheng smiled sweetly, but suddenly, after deciphering the meaning behind Qin Yao’s words, she turned red as she blinked at Qin Yao, “Hmm what I meant was until he awakens.”

“Mmm, that’s what I meant. What do you think I was referring to?” Qin Yao grinned. Mo Qingcheng could only scold herself silently for talking too much.

“Sigh, I don’t know when would he wake up.” Qin Yao’s countenance was painted by worry once more.

“Don’t worry. He will wake up soon.” Mo Qingcheng consoled her. Actually, she also knew of the extent of Qin Wentian’s injuries. No one knew exactly when would he wake up.

“Hmm.” Qin Yao lightly nodded her head. “Qingcheng, I’ll go see if the medicinal soup has been boiled. I’ll bring over a new bowl later.”

After speaking, Qin Yao left. Mo Qingcheng scooped the medicinal soup with a spoon and fed it to Qin Wentian. After which, she gently wiped his lips as she mumbled, “Dumbo, this is already the second time I’m boiling medicinal herbs and feeding you. You have to get well soon, okay?”

Mo Qingcheng propped her chin up with her hands as she stared blankly at Qin Wentian. She had never expected that the fellow she would boil medicine twice for would be Qin Wentian. Maybe, this was fate?

Gazing at that handsome countenance, she thought he looked extremely at peace. She could still remember that the first time she met him, he was still somewhat soft and immature. This year, he had been through a tremendous amount of suffering, and now he had even almost thrown his life away. A real dumbo indeed.
As she lost herself in her musings, Mo Qingcheng somehow unknowingly stretched her hand out and pinched Qin Wentian on his cheek, revealing a mischievous expression. This fellow was not bad looking at all.
It was as though Qin Wentian could feel something. His eyelashes twitched as his eyes slowly opened. After which, he saw a peerless countenance exhibiting an expression akin to panic with her fingers pinching on his face.
Swish! Mo Qingcheng retracted her hands at the speed of lightning. As she saw the bewildered expression on Qin Wentian’s face, her face instantly reddened, wishing nothing more for the earth to swallow her whole right now.
“I’m just trying to test to see if you could feel anything. It seems like I’m psychic, since you really woke up.” Mo Qingcheng acted like professional actress while smiling widely. However, Qin Wentian didn’t say anything, just silently gazing at her, causing the color of her already reddened face to deepen even further.
Looking at the bashful expression on Mo Qingcheng’s face, Qin Wentian’s heart palpitated wildly. Mo Qingcheng, at this moment, was beyond beautiful. She was gorgeous.

“Come here.” Qin Wentian whispered. Mo Qingcheng’s eyelashes fluttered; she blinked her eye as she lowered her head, moving her face closer to Qin Wentian. Her heart was pounding madly, she had never been this nervous before.
Only to see Qin Wentian reaching out with his hands, pinching her cheeks a couple of time before smiling, “It’s only fair now.”
Mo Qingcheng froze, trembling slightly.she was at a loss, unsure of what to do.
“I’ll go get the medicine.” Mo Qingcheng quickly ran away. Seeing that disappearing silhouette, a radiant smile lit up Qin Wentian’s countenance as he replied, “Thank you.”
Today, Mo Qingcheng seemed to be preoccupied and absent-minded. Looking at her bashful expression, Qin Wentian would occasionally tease her about it. Upon seeing this, Qin Yao was extremely happy; it seemed like that was truly a chance for Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng to be together.
In the coming days, Qin Wentian recovered with insane speed. On the fifth day, he could already get up and cultivate. The tempest engulfing the Royal Capital was still unabated, but the violent struggles within seemed to be very far from Qin Wentian.
Mustang, Luo Huan and the rest would occasionally visit Qin Wentian. They refused to tell him news from the outside but rather told him to focus on his cultivation. Not only that, Mustang repeatedly instructed him not to leave this place until he step into Yuanfu, and that he wasn’t allowed to participate in the struggles outside the academy. This caused Qin Wentian to smile bitterly; it was because the Emperor Star Academy feared another similar incident from occurring again and didn’t want him to risk himself.
Qin Wentian also didn’t want to make things difficult for the academy, so he quietly focused on his cultivation. Finally, a month after the incident, Qin Wentian broke through to the 9th level, stepping into the peak of Arterial Circulation. He was now only a single step away from Yuanfu.
After breaking through to the 9th level of Arterial Circulation, Qin Wentian spent a few more days consolidating his foundation while also not forgetting to further practice his innate techniques.
Currently, for the Thousand Hands Imprint innate technique, Qin Wentian had already mastered the 4th stance – the Kuji Imprint. His mastery of his other innate techniques, Falling Mountain Palms as well as Berserker Beast Halbert Art, also grew increasingly more complete.
Today, Qin Wentian once again came to the Heavenly Star Pavilion. Upon passing the guardian on the stairway of the 7th level, he dipped into a respectful bow.
Only to see the old man opening his eyes, as a glow could be seen in his previously cloudy eyes. “Are you confident?”
“Let’s try.” Qin Wentian spoke. The old man turned his head, closing his eyes as Qin Wentian walked passed him and stood before the door to the entrance of the 9th level, which has never been opened before.
What exactly was the secret hiding within the 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion?
Gushing sounds echoed as the Divine Energy in his body circulated in a frenzy. Stepping forwards, he slammed one of his palms into the door, causing it to shudder violently. Upon seeing this, the guardian’s heart trembled as well.
Qin Wentian retreated a step. The Divine Energy within his body continued surging as he struck out once again. This time around, he blasted forwards with both palms, executing both the Falling Mountain Palms and the Kuji Imprint into the door of the entrance.
BOOOM! The resounding echo from the impact caused the structure of the entire Heavenly Star Pavilion to shudder. The students of the academy curiously turned their gazes towards the Pavilion, wondering who was up there.
His ancient halberd appeared in his hands. Despite the boosting effects of a Divine Weapon, the might an Arterial Circulation Cultivator could unleash, still had a limit. Thus, the guardian didn’t stop him from using a Divine Weapon to aid him in his quest.
In that instant, Qin Wentian’s blood began to boil. Taking a step forwards, the aura of absolute obedience permeated the air. His whole demeanor turned demonic as the ancient halberd in his hands explosively slashed out.
Pffft! The old guardian’s eyes abruptly snapped open as as terrifying resplendent light flickered into existence.
Qin Wentian succeeded. He actually forced that door open!
Qin Wentian was also incomparably excited. Walking forwards, he sought to discover what exactly was the secret that was hidden on the 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion. However, what caused Qin Wentian to be puzzled was that behind the door, there was only a empty space. This place seemed extremely ordinary, so different from the 7th and 8th level. There was only an incredibly ancient-looking map scroll lying there.
Unrolling the map scroll, a bewildered expression painted his face. This… this was a map.

Was the final secret the Azure Emperor hid in the 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion actually just a map?
Qin Wentian had never been out of Chu, so he naturally didn’t understand what the map was trying to portray. After keeping it,he walked out, but the old guardian stood in front of him, blocking his path.
“Senior.” Qin Wentian respectfully called out.
“From today onwards, the 8th and 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion shall no longer exist. The 7th level will be opened up to the talented genius students of the academy. As for what you have obtained here, you are not to mention it to anyone else” the old guardian instructed.
“Understood.” Qin Wentian nodded. He fully understood the logic behind why it was a calamity for one to possess secrets that one was powerless to protect.
After this, Qin Wentian didn’t immediately leave. Instead, he entered the entrance to the 7th level, heading towards the Spirit Beast Testing Grounds. This time around, he didn’t meet many others, only a plethora of demonic beasts.
Qin Wentian didn’t know that at this moment, there was a huge commotion within the Emperor Star Academy.
Outside the academy, a line of Elders and students stood together in welcome. In the far off horizons, a line of silhouettes mounted demonic beasts as they rode over, while in the air, several figures soared, stopping in the airspace above the Emperor Star Academy. Their gazes were all imperious and sharp, as though they were unequalled in the world.
If Qin Wentian were here, he would discovered that among the newcomers, there was one person whom he knew. This person was none other than Yue Qingfeng, the genius from the Azure Emperor Palace whom he had met before in the Spirit Beast Testing Ground.
The Emperor Star Academy only received news two days ago that people from the Azure Emperor Palace would be paying a visit to them. As to what was the reason for the visit, they were all unclear. They could only bring people together to welcome this ‘reinforcement’ from this transcendent power that shared the same root.
Not only the Azure Emperor Palace. Today, there were many powerful experts who came to Chu.
In the Royal Palace, Xiao Lan furrowed his brows. He didn’t expect the news would be leaked so fast, the news that the Azure Emperor had hidden his greatest secret within the Emperor Star Academy.
If this secret was truly leaked, not to mention a small country like Chu, even the entirety of the Grand Xia Empire would be shakened.

Chapter 176: The Guest Pressuring the Host

Within the Spirit Beast Testing Ground, Qin Wentian had already slaughtered several demonic beasts, devouring their demonic cores. However his eyes at this moment were incomparably clear.
Before Qin Wentian, a gigantic beast of immense stature appeared. This demonic beast was shrouded in a golden light, with a height of 4 metres. Its palms were as big as praying mats and could easily kill a human with a casual swipe.
Golden Primal Ape, from the Golden Primal Ape Constellation of the 5th Heavenly Layer, ranked 3rd in the Warbeast Index. Equipped with flawless speed and defense, it is feared the most for its terrifyingly quick speed.
However, at this moment the golden ape was suffering immensely as it spat out mouthful of fresh blood. The tiny figure in front of him could actually wound him?
The blood within Qin Wentian’s body was boiling as his long hair danced in the wind. Wielding the ancient halberd in his hands, it constituted an imposing scene, akin to an ancient god of war, unexcelled in the battlefield.
After breaking through to the 9th level of Arterial Circulation, in addition to the Fiend Transformation Technique, his strength was many times higher when compared to the him who entered here in the past.
Boom! The golden ape stomped on the earth, dashing forwards, causing fissures to appear as the ground cracked. Its gigantic palms swiped towards Qin Wentian, with a pressure even stronger than that of mountains.
Swish~ A pair of illusory Garuda Wings appeared on the back of Qin Wentian. His speed was as fast as lightning, rushing forwards instead of retreating, appearing in front of the ape. WIth a roar of rage, his body flew upwards as the might of his ancient halberd exploded forth.
RARRRRRRRRRRRR. The ancient Primal Ape howled in madness. The volume of its roar caused intense pain as the sound waves vibrated within Qin Wentian’s eardrums, giving him a splitting headache. With a howl of his own, Qin Wentian blasted forth countless palm strikes, aiming for the mouth of the golden ape, while his ancient halberd slashed forwards and came into contact with a gigantic palm of the golden ape.
The ground trembled and broke apart, giving testament to the ferociousness of the savage battle between man and beast. The surrounding demonic beasts all fled for fear of their lives. After an hour of intense clashes, the golden ape’s body was riddled with injuries, but Qin Wentian wasn’t feeling too good either. His inner organs trembled violently despite him executing the Garuda Movement Technique, choosing not to clash directly with the Golden Primal Ape.
Puchi~ Chance! Qin Wentian’s ancient halberd pierced into the golden ape’s eyes as its roar shook the Heavens. The Golden Primal Ape slammed both its palms forward, using the explosive momentum in a decisive choice to retreat. Qin Wentian started a game of cat and mouse, following close behind and after the time it took for a stick of incense to burn out, the Golden Primal Ape couldn’t sustain anymore. It was slaughtered unceremoniously by Qin Wentian.
Qin Wentian naturally absorbed the beast spirit with no traces of politeness. He was exceptionally joyful and continued hunting prey in the Spirit Beast Testing Ground. After several moments, he finally met the ranked #5 Crimsonblood Thunder Hawk. Right from the start, Qin Wentian pretended to be injured as he retreated unceasingly upon coming into contact with it. It was only because of that that caused the lightning fast Crimsonblood Thunder Hawk to be lured into the trap. Only after absorbing its beast spirit did he departed from the Testing Grounds.
Now after he absorbed so many beast spirits, the demonic aura his person exuded was getting stronger and stronger, especially when he activated the Fiend Transformation Art.
In the outside world, those from the Emperor Star Academy welcomed the experts from the Azure Emperor Palace, showing them around the academy. However, they didn’t know that those from the Azure Emperor Palace was naturally not interested in strolling about. Instead, what they wanted was to understand each and every part of the Emperor Star Academy to see where would be the place with the highest possibility for the Azure Emperor to hide his secret within.
In the vast blue skies, a white crane flew by. Mo Qingcheng came to deliver medicinal herbs for Qin Wentian today. Although Qin Wentian was gradually recovering and his pallor was already back to normal, she was still worried. After all, his heart was pierced through, it would naturally be for the best if there was external aid like medicinal herbs and pills to nourish his body after his recovery.
“Grandpa.” The white crane descended.Bbewilderment shone on her face upon seeing her grandfather accompanying a group of strangers.
She was naturally clear of her grandfather’s position within the Emperor Star Academy. What statuses did these group of guests have that her grandfather was personally showing them around?

“Qingcheng, quick, come and greet these elders from the Azure Emperor Palace.” Old Gu smiled, reminding her with his words in case Mo Qingcheng said something inappropriate.
“Azure Emperor Palace?” Mo Qingcheng’s heart trembled slightly. She heard of this name before; wasn’t it one of the transcendent powers of the nine states?
“Mo Qingcheng of the junior generation pays her respects to the elders.” Mo Qingcheng bowed. Those from the Azure Emperor Palace contemplated Mo Qingcheng, especially several of the younger cultivators. Their gazes was heated up by passion, sweeping across Mo Qingcheng’s body. To think that there was a beauty of this level in a such small country like Chu; even in their Azure State Capital, there were almost no females that was comparable to her in looks.

“What a beautiful child, is she already betrothed to someone?” A middle-aged man from the Azure Emperor Palace smiled.

“Qingcheng is not yet 18, she’s not betrothed to anyone,” Old Gu politely replied.
“Haha, it’s almost time to talk about matters of marriage engagement and betrothal isn’t it? Mo Qingcheng, what’s the level of your cultivation?” the middle-aged man asked.

“1st level of Yuanfu.” Mo Qingcheng wasn’t feeling too happy in her heart, but she still had to reply.
The eyes of the middle aged man brightened. Not even 18 years of age, yet already stepped into Yuanfu. In addition to the beauty of hers, she was really remarkable. Thinking of here, he cast a glance at Yue Qingfeng who stood by his side.
Yue Qingfeng naturally understood his father’s intentions. His heart was also moved upon seeing the beautiful countenance of Mo Qingcheng.
“Miss Mo, my name is Yue Qingfeng.”

Only to see Yue Qingcheng smiling at her, exuding elegance and politeness. Such a scene caused the hearts of many in the Emperor Star Academy to freeze. Old Gu had wanted to push Mo Qingcheng and Qin Wentian together. But now, even those who were blind could see the intentions of Yue Qingfeng.
In Chu, although there were many who were secretly in love with Mo Qingcheng, with the status and background of Mo Qingcheng, if she was unwilling, no one would dare to open their mouths and raise the subject.
However, it was different for Yue Qingfeng. He was from a transcendent power, originating from the Azure Emperor Palace.

Mo Qingcheng nodded to Yue Qingfeng and didn’t reply, silently scolding herself that she came at the wrong time.
“Hahaha, both of you of the junior generation should communicate more. It must be boring accompanying us these old folks.” Yue Qingfeng’s father laughed. Taking the hint, Yue Qingfeng stepped forwards, smiling at Mo Qingcheng. “Miss Mo, shall we go for a walk?”
Mo Qingcheng was naturally unwilling in her heart. She didn’t reply.
“Qingcheng.” At this moment, a silhouette walked over. Mo Qingcheng turned her head, as a gentle smile blossomed on her face. The newcomer was none other than Qin Wentian.
Qin Wentian had already noticed the happenings over here earlier. He had already met Yue Qingfeng in the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds and knew that he was from the Azure Emperor Palace. Seeing how he obviously had the intentions to court Mo Qingcheng, Qin Wentian felt extremely uncomfortable in his heart.
Such a feeling, Qin Wentian had never experienced it before.
“What are you doing here?” Qin Wentian walked to the side of Mo Qingcheng as he extended his hands and pulled the dainty hand of Mo Qingcheng along. Mo Qingcheng trembled a little as an expression of shyness flashed in her eyes. She naturally understood what Qin Wentian was planning to do. Going along with his plans, she gently smiled and replied, “I’m here to deliver the medicine for you.”
Seeing this scene occurring, those from the Emperor Star Academy grew increasingly worried. To think that the relationship between Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng had gotten closer to such an extent, they wondered whether those from the Azure Emperor Palace would take offence at this.
Yue Qingfeng’s eyes narrowed; he naturally recognised Qin Wentian.
“Wentian, quick come and pay your respects to the elders of the Azure Emperor Palace.” Old Gu called out. Qin Wentian nodded as he bowed, “Qin Wentian of the junior generation pays his respect to the elders.”
The middle-aged cast a glance at Qin Wentian, as his eyes gleamed with a sharp light.
“Let’s go.” The middle aged man immediately led the group away, walking past Qin Wentian, disregarding his existence. Earlier, he played matchmaker for Yue Qingfeng and Mo Qingcheng, but in the blink of an eye, an insignificant insect from the junior generation came by and spoiled his mood. His face was completely thrown away.
Qin Wentian, the champion of a mere Jun Lin Banquet, how could he possibly put him in his eyes?
“Brother Qin, nice to see you again.” Yue Qingfeng walked to the side of Qin Wentian, offering his greetings while simultaneously sweeping his gaze impolitely over Mo Qingcheng’s figure before leaving. Qin Wentian furrowed his brows as a cold light flickered in his eyes.
After those from the Azure Emperor Palace left, seeing that Qin Wentian was still holding on to her hand, Mo Qingcheng rolled her eyes at Qin Wentian and whispered, “Hey, you are still not letting go?”
Feeling the soft touch of Mo Qingcheng’s hands, Qin Wentian was really unwilling to indeed. Smiling, he pinched her palms gently, causing Mo Qingcheng to blush before he finally let go.
“Lecherous fellow.” Mo Qingcheng scolded in a low voice, then she quickly walked forwards. However, a shallow smile could be seen reflected on her face. The smile also contained traces of shyness, just like a young girl experiencing her first awakening of love.
“I couldn’t help it.” An awkward smile appeared on Qin Wentian’s face as he rubbed his head. Catching up to Mo Qingcheng, he noticed that the beautiful face of hers was intentionally arranged in a frown, with traces of mischievousness mixed in it. Qin Wentian involuntarily became an imbecile as he stared at her, warmth blossoming in his heart.
This was the first time he experienced such an emotion. It felt extremely wondrous, a slight bit of nervousness mixed in with a little warmth. It was truly marvelous.
Those from the Azure Emperor Palace arrived at a great hall. Yue Qingfeng’s father sat in the seat of the host while the others of his group stood by his side.
Those from the Emperor Star Academy were helpless. In actuality, they had contacted the Azure Emperor Palace before. Back then, the incident of Luo Tianya was precisely resolved with the help of the Emperor Azure Palace. However, the Emperor Azure Palace was also split into factions, namely the Azure Faction as well as the Fei Faction. Currently, the power of the Azure Faction was growing weaker and weaker, and they gradually lost their authority within the Azure Emperor Palace. This time round, those who came to the Emperor Star Academy were all from the Fei Faction.
Yue Hanshan sat in the master seat, sweeping his sharp gaze over at those from the Emperor Star Academy. “From today onwards, my Azure Emperor Palace will directly take control of the Heavenly Star Pavilion and Astral River Hall of the Emperor Star Academy. Qingfeng, accompany me to the Dreamsky Forest later.”

The faces of those from the Emperor Star Academy froze, as their countenances become extremely unsightly to behold.
“Why? Is there a problem?” Yue Hanshan coldly asked as he noticed the frowning faces of those from the Emperor Star Academy.
“There are no problems, I only hope that the Azure Emperor Palace wouldn’t disrupt the cultivation of our students.” Old Gu lamented in his heart; they couldn’t afford to offend the powerful Azure Emperor Palace.
“Good. In addition, send out some of your elders to bring my people to the other secret places of the Emperor Star Academy,” Yue Hanshan spoke again. Those from the Emperor Star Academy could only agree unwillingly.

It was as though these people were looking for something.
“Move out.” Yue Hanshan waved his hands, and the others left. Very quickly, only him and his son Yue Qingfeng remained in the great hall.
“Father, is the secret of the Azure Emperor really hidden here?” Yue Qingfeng asked.
Only to see Yue Hanshan frowning. He closed his eyes, replying in a low voice. “Those from the Azure Faction found some notes of the Azure Emperor. Back then, he stopped in Chu several times. There is a very great probability that the secret was hidden here. Qingfeng, if we really discovered the secret, your future would be incomparably glorious.”
Yue Qingfeng’s heart trembled upon imagining it. Back then, the secret as to why the Azure Emperor was ranked first among the 36 starlords, and why his combat prowess was so terrifying—able to stand alone against unending tides of enemies of the same cultivation as him, defeating them with absurd ease—was finally discovered.
The Azure Emperor, did not only have a single Yuanfu.

When the arterial pathways of Stellar Martial Cultivators transformed into a spiral, forming their Yuan Reservoir, there would only be a single Yuanfu (Yuan Palace) within their bodies. This was an unshakable, ironclad law of cultivation.
However the Azure Emperor broke this ironclad law; somehow, he managed to open up several Yuanfu within his body. To Stellar Martial Cultivators, the meaning of having several Yuanfu was extremely clear. This indicated that his body could store several times the amount of Astral Energy others could store, while also giving him the ability to nourish different Astral Novas in his different Yuanfus. How could his combat prowess not be astounding?

Chapter 177: Outrage

There were numerous powerhouses that came to Chu, however, they weren’t here for the struggle between the Emperor Star Academy and the Royal Academy. This was something inconsequential to them, and hardly worthy of their interest.
Those from the Azure Emperor Palace had caused a commotion so great that not even the dogs and chickens were left undisturbed. Although they promised the Emperor Star Academy that they wouldn’t involve the students, they weren’t the least bit polite in the execution of their search. The innate techniques kept within the Heavenly Star Pavilion were all upended and in disarray. The Azure Emperor Palace had also discovered the 7th level and the entrance to the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds. As for the entrance to the 8th and 9th levels, the interior space within had all been destroyed. These levels only contained ordinary innate techniques, without anything of import.
However, the Emperor Star Academy was infuriated to see that whenever those from the Azure Emperor Palace came across a powerful innate technique, they would shamelessly seize it for themselves.
And what was even more outrageous was that they even wanted to tear down the Emperor Star Monuments, the stone tablets the academy stood for. These very monuments symbolised the academy’s history.
At that moment, many students gathered in front of the monuments. Ren Qianxing, Old Gu and many of the elders were there as well, even the old guardian from the Heavenly Star Pavilion’s 7th Level had arrived.

The Azure Emperor Palace group approached the tablets, only for the old guardian to call out, “This place is the lifeblood of the Azure Emperor, and the place that records the history of our Emperor Star Academy. Please be lenient and show some mercy.”
“You must be the current headmaster of the Emperor Star Academy, descendent of the Azure Emperor, the one named Diyi. Am I right?” Yue Hanshan swept a glance at the old guardian, a sharp light flickering in his eyes.
“Indeed,” the old man spoke calmly, causing the majority of those from the academy to freeze in shock. This seemingly ordinary, inconspicuous aged guardian was actually the current headmaster of the Emperor Star Academy.
Were all the previous headmasters of the Academy all descended from the bloodline of the Azure Emperor? Had they always been silently protecting the Academy from the shadows?

“Diyi. You should already be aware about the purpose of my visit, and understand that we have no choice but to destroy the Emperor Star Monuments.” The gaze of Yue Hanshan was serene, yet an unquestionable steel-like expression gleamed in them.
“How ruthless.” The students of the Academy were all outraged but even so, they didn’t dare to say a word.
“The Azure Emperor Palace share the same roots as the Emperor Star Academy, how can you be this overbearing?” From afar, Mo Qingcheng and Qin Wentian stood together. Mo Qingcheng’s brows were knitted in displeasure. She was truly and exceedingly furious at the Palace’s oppressive nature.
“Miss Mo, the Emperor Star Academy holds no sway over the decisions of the Azure Emperor Palace. After all, both parties are not on the same level.” Yue Qingfeng gazed at Mo Qingcheng, as a warm and gentle smile appeared on his face. Each time he saw her, he felt a stirring in his heart.
Seeing the besotted expression on Yue Qingfeng’s face, Mo Qingcheng could only clench her fist tightly. It was obvious the Azure Emperor Palace was prepared to shred all forms of cordiality.
“What does Miss Mo think about accompanying me to stay at the Palace together? After all, this place is too small. Your talent would only blossom when matched with a place such as ours,” Yue Qingfeng seemingly joked, yet it was glaringly obvious to all the meaning his words hinted at. He was taking liberties with Mo Qingcheng.
“You are too impudent.” Embers of anger sparked in Qin Wentian’s eyes, only to see Yue Qingfeng shift his gaze over with coldness. Staring at Qin Wentian, he laughed coldly, “Does Brother Qin still think that we are within the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds?”
Even before the sound of his voice faded, he transformed into a blur of shadows as a terrifying pressure gushed out towards Qin Wentian. Striking out without warning, and within the grounds of the Emperor Star Academy, it obviously indicated his disdain and contempt for this place.
Naturally, Yue Qingfeng believed that his strength would be able to suppress Qin Wentian. After all, they were already clear about each other’s strength level back when they allied together in the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds.
The strength of Yue Qingfeng’s palm strike was unfathomably ferocious, and gave the impression of being able to conquer everything in its path.

Qin Wentian froze into place as he executed the Falling Mountain Palms. As the two palm attacks collided, a booming sound rang out, and the crowd witnessed Qin Wentian’s body forced back into retreat from the impact. Blood seeped out of the corners of his mouth and a sense of worry filled the hearts of the crowd. Yue Qingfeng was tyrannical indeed, to think that he was able to injure Qin Wentian in a single exchange of blows.
Those from the Azure Emperor Palace merely looked on with disinterest, as though this outcome was only to be expected. After all, the aura Qin Wentian emitted was only at the 8th level of Arterial Circulation. Based on the power of Yue Qingfeng, if he wanted to kill Qin Wentian, he could do so with the same ease as flipping his palms.
However, Mo Qingcheng’s beautiful eyes gleamed as she glanced at Qin Wentian. This fellow was finally getting smarter.
Naturally, she knew that Qin Wentian had already stepped into the 9th level of Arterial Circulation. He intentionally suppressed his own cultivation base in that earlier exchange of blows. If not for this, she didn’t believe Yue Qingfeng could defeat Qin Wentian in combat.
“Tear it down.” At that moment, Yue Qingfeng commanded in a cold voice. Those from the Azure Emperor Palace jointly sent out palm attacks, and amidst a deafening explosion the Emperor Star Monuments shattered, the fragments from the destroyed tablets blasting out in all directions.
“No….” Luo Huan witnessed the stone tablet of Mountain destroyed with the rest. Her eyes reddened as a surge of murderous intent passed through her. She was truly infuriated.
Those from the Palace began searching through the fragments but found nothing hidden within. Snorting with disdain, they flicked their sleeves and departed.
“Qingcheng, if you’re free, let’s go out together.” Before leaving, Yue Qingfeng smiled at Mo Qingcheng. Seeing that beautiful countenance, his heart stirred with feeling. Even if he couldn’t get her to be his wife, as long as he could get her body, wouldn’t that be just as exciting?

At the thought of this, the blood in his body surged. Sweeping his eyes over Mo Qingcheng’s figure, his smile gradually widened.

Mo Qingcheng could only bite hard on her lips until her blood flowed, suffering the humiliation in silence. How could she not understand what the smile on Yue Qingfeng’s face foreshadowed.
Luo Huan walked forwards, kneeling amongst fragments of the now destroyed Emperor Star Monuments. She appeared absent-minded, as though devoid of all spirit. Her countenance was clearly paler by several shades, her heart sunk with a heavy sense of loss.

Those from the Academy could only stand in silence, tolerating the humiliation and anger in their hearts. Yet, nobody dared to speak out.
Qin Wentian witnessed all of these happenings. Booming sounds rang out as he clenched his hands into fists. A terrifying coldness could be seen within his eyes as he looked at Yu Qingfeng’s departing back. That, was truly killing intent.
Qin Wentian reached out and caught hold of Mo Qingcheng dainty hands, and her body tensed up in response. After she recovered, as she turned her gaze towards Qin Wentian, a sweet smile blossomed on her face causing Qin Wentian’s state of mind to ripple involuntarily.
“Let’s leave.” Qin Wentian held on to Mo Qingcheng’s hand as they departed the area.

…………
Within the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds, Qin Wentian once again began his slaughter of the demonic beasts. Even those beasts ranked within the top 10 weren’t able to withstand his strength.
At the peak of a mountain, Qin Wentian halted his steps and cast his gaze forwards, surveying the majestic mountain range before him.
An extremely bizarre looking demonic beast was located over there. The demonic beast had the head of a dragon, the body of a lion, the wings of a garuda, the scales of a Xuanwu, the tail of a python and the claws of a Kirin. It’s demeanor appeared to be incomparably malevolent.
“Demon Sovereign,” Qin Wentian breathed. It was ranked #1 in the Warbeast Index. In the index, there was only a description of its appearance but held no records of its abilities.
Qin Wentian recognised the beast at a single glance. This was a Demon Sovereign.
A cold, sinister light gleamed from the depths of the Demon Sovereign. The fearsome light erupted from its body, and its sinister eyes gave the impression that it could capture souls, seemingly hinting at the possibility that this demonic beast possessed the ability to influence the mental state of others.
With the ancient halberd in his hands, Qin Wentian transformed into a blurred shadow as he dashed forwards to the Demon Sovereign. His purpose of entering the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds was none other than to hunt the top ranking beasts recorded in the Warbeast Index. And since fate had now arranged a meeting with the #1 demonic beast, how could he not seize this golden opportunity dangling right in front of him?
A burst of eye-piercing Astral Light inundated the area and with a tremble, the void shook as space was torn apart. Beside the Demon Sovereign, several other demonic beasts appeared. Together, their howls of rage created a harsh and discordant cacophony, striking fear in the hearts of those who heard it.
Qin Wentian froze, as an expression of shock flashed in his eyes.
“It’s a Summoning-type Demonic Beast. The #1 ranked demonic beast of the Warbeast Index, the Demon Sovereign, was actually a Summoning-type Beast.” Qin Wentian’s heart pounded with excitement. Wasn’t this a beast spirit that anyone would yearn for, even in his dreams? However, he quickly returned to his senses as he noticed several demonic beasts dashing towards him.
Swish~ A raging gust of wind billowed past. Qin Wentian moved so fast it was as though he had transformed into a real Garuda. With the ancient halberd in his hands, he smashed out with the Azure Dragon Stance of the Berserker Beasts Halbard Art, demolishing a demonic beast in front of him. Qin Wentian didn’t pause in his motions, following up his earlier attack with the Vermilion Bird Stance, sweeping the ancient halberd out in a horizontal arc amidst the roars and howls of the demonic beasts.
Two days later, the exhausted spirit body of Qin Wentian exited the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds. He felt extremely uncomfortable; his spiritual consciousness was riddled with injuries and was on the brink of dissipating by the time he defeated the Demon Sovereign. Covered with wounds, and using each and every bit of his skills and innate techniques, he narrowly overcame the Demon Sovereign and absorbed its beast spirit. Despite his exhaustion, Qin Wentian felt exceptionally excited to gain such a reward.
“Wentian.”
As Qin Wentian walked back to his residence at the Emperor Star Academy, a voice abruptly called out. Qin Wentian turned back only to see Mo Qingcheng approaching him. Her initially icy cold face broke out into a smile as she looked at him. However, Yue Qingfeng was also following her from a distance.
For the past two days, Mo Qingcheng could only tolerate his harassment.

Qin Wentian stood at her side, whispering, “Does he keep doing that?”

“Mmhm.” Mo Qingcheng nodded with an expression of unhappiness on her face.
“Let’s go for a walk.” Qin Wentian pulled Mo Qingcheng along with a smile. Mo Qingcheng agreed and they ran off in the direction of the Academy’s exit.
Those in the academy couldn’t help but feel slightly jealous upon seeing the closeness between Mo Qingcheng and Qin Wentian. But despite this, they had to concede that the two of them made a great couple, and hoped that they would have a beautiful future together.
Yue Qingfeng’s eyes narrowed, flashing with a cold light, as he watched Qin Wentian pulling Mo Qingcheng along.
Those from the Azure Emperor Palace were growing more and more insolent. Despite turning the entire academy topsy turvy, they were still unable to find what they were looking for.
Yue Qingfeng felt somewhat bored and decided to walk about the Emperor Star Academy with some youths from the Azure Emperor Palace. However today, a group of blind fools actually dared to antagonise them, which led to a clash erupting between both parties. In addition, those from the academy had Yuanfu cultivators with them, which easily suppressed the group of Arterial Circulation cultivators from the Palace. How could these prideful young cultivators take this lying down?
They were from a transcendent power, to think that there would actually be people that dared to antagonise them, especially from a small place like Chu. They were truly courting death.
In the midst of the escalating conflict, those from the Azure Emperor Palace intercepted their opponents and asked Yue Qingfeng to return for more reinforcements. At the first opportunity, Yue Qingfeng immediately departed the area, but just as he passed by a remote-looking area, a figure clad in black appeared, blocking his path.
The black-clad figure lowered his head, advancing with a long spear in his hands.
“Who are you?” Yue Qingfeng halted his steps as he inquired coldly. He had never imagined that someone would actually attempt to murder him in broad daylight.
Yue Qingfeng wasn’t an idiot, he could faintly sense that this person had a bone to pick with him.
“The one that will take your life,” a cold voice echoed in the air. The figure transformed into a blurred shadow as filaments of spear light erupted forth. A monstrous demonic qi permeated the air, the long spear trembling as fearsome spirals began to form at the tip of the spear head. Each spiral seemed to contain boundless energy within them.
Yue Qingfeng inclined his head as he stared at the silhouette dashing towards him. Upon meeting the eyes of his attacker, his heart involuntarily trembled with violence.
“It’s you?” Yue Qingfeng raised his arms to attack, his mighty palms directly colliding with the long spear. A piercing sound echoed out, as the long spear ran through his palms with absurd ease and immediately penetrated his throat, pinning Yue Qingfeng to the ground.
“9th level of Arterial Circulation.” Yue Qingfeng’s eyes widened in shock as he died with one remaining regret. Not even in his wildest dreams could he have imagined that he would die in such a small place like Chu.

Chapter 178: Travelling together

Within the grounds of the Emperor Star Academy, lay the corpse of Yue Qingfeng. The cause of his death was a long spear penetrating his throat, pinning and locking his body to the ground.

In front of his corpse, Yue Hanshan shuddered violently; he would never have believed, and was still unwilling to believe, that this trip to Chu would lead to the murder of his son, Yue Qingfeng.

His eyes reddened, and a towering aura of killing intent could be felt gushing forth from him. All those from the Emperor Star Academy fled upon witnessing this scene, their hearts involuntarily rejoicing in the face of Yue Hanshan’s misfortune. After all, those from the Azure Emperor Palace were insufferably arrogant, as they ravaged through the entire Emperor Star Academy, turning everything upside down. This loss could be considered a punishment for them.

Surely, the reason behind Yue Qingfeng’s death must be because he had offended someone. He had sowed seeds of vengeance everywhere, ultimately leading to his death.

“Investigate, INVESTIGATE EVERYTHING COMPLETELY!” Yue Hanshan howled in anger, his infuriated voice resounding throughout the Emperor Star Academy.

….

At that moment, Qin Wentian was sitting in the courtyard of his own residence with a map scroll in his hands. Upon hearing the howl of rage, Qin Wentian inclined his head, directing his gaze towards the commotion with an unperturbed expression.

If he didn’t kill Yue Qingfeng, Mo Qingcheng would never be at ease in her heart. So, Yue Qingfeng must die.

That once childish young man had undergone too many baptisms under the cruelty of reality, to the point where his heart grew colder and colder. He had no qualms about transforming into a god of blood and slaughter, if a threat were made to the people around him.

Lowering his head, he turned his attention back to the map in his hands. Looking closely at it, Qin Wentian traced his finger to a random location on the map. Over it, there were traces of words inscribed.

“This place is the Demon Continent of the Grand Xia Empire. According to the map, the X marked there should be referring to a forested mountain range within it.” Qin Wentian stared at the terrain; the continent’s size was just too vast, with forests and mountain ranges even more expansive compared to some other countries outlined in the map. One such country was the Dark Forest of Chu, a forested region so vast that it even enveloped the entire Royal Capital of Chu within it. It didn’t seem possible that anyone could determine for certain the secrets hidden within.

(Change of translation terms: State –> Continent e.g. Transcendent powers of the nine states → Transcendent powers of the nine continents)

The X-mark on the map, referred to an extremely huge region made up of an immense forested mountain range.

Qin Wentian studied that part of the map, noting that the X-mark was pointing to a random location within a small city. The map was so clear to the point where the X-mark referred to very specific locations within the city. He wondered what secret the Azure Emperor had hidden there.

“Wentian.” At this moment, a voice drifted over. Qin Wentian turned his head towards the voice and saw Old Gu and Mo Qingcheng descending from the air.

“Old Gu, Qingcheng.” Qin Wentian kept the map as he stood up in greeting.

“Yue Qingfeng died,” Old Gu stated, staring intently at Qin Wentian. Upon seeing the unperturbed expression on Qin Wentian’s face, he sighed silently in relief as he shifted topics. “We’ve also finally discovered the reason behind the Azure Emperor Palace’s visit.”

Naturally, the Emperor Star Academy wouldn’t spend too much effort into investigating the culprit behind Yue Qingfeng’s death.

“Why were they here?” Qin Wentian asked as his eyes flickered with curiosity.

“There are two great Factions within the Azure Emperor Palace. One of them – named the Azure Faction, were the direct descendants that share the same bloodline as the Azure Emperor. The Azure Faction and the Emperor Star Academy were linked in countless ways. Our current Headmaster Diyi is the representative from the Azure Faction, and those that came here to Chu are from the other Faction. From the side of the Azure Faction we received news that of a high probability the past Azure Emperor had hidden his life’s greatest secret within the Emperor Star Academy. Xiao Lan of the Nine Mystical Palace came here because of this news, as well.”

“The greatest secret of the Azure Emperor?” Qin Wentian’s eyes shone.

“Yes, his greatest secret. In the past, the Azure Emperor was unmatched and peerless, regardless of whichever cultivation realm he was in. Easily obtaining victory, even when facing multiple opponents at the same level, he was said to be an invincible existence. The reason for this was because the Azure Emperor had broken the ironclad law of cultivation – he had more than one Yuanfu. After the secret was exposed, countless powerful experts from the Grand Xia Empire banded together to chase after the Azure Emperor for the sake of obtaining the secret. It was highly possible that before he disappeared, he came to Chu and founded the Emperor Star Academy.”

“More than one Yuanfu?” Qin Wentian exclaimed in shock. According to what he knew, everyone could only cultivate a single Yuan Ocean within their bodies, this was an indisputable fact. After which, the Yuan Ocean would also be used to nurture their Astral Soul until their Astral Nova manifested.

“You are right, but there may be a heaven-defying innate technique to break that ironclad law. It’s just that no one knew of the existence of it,” Old Gu continued, as Qin Wentian’s heart suddenly trembled as he thought of something.
Map. That map from the 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion.
But if that map could really show the hiding place of the Azure Emperor’s secret, shouldn’t Headmaster Diyi be able to deduce it?
In these few thousand years, no one had stormed the door guarding the entrance of the 9th level. Was this the absolute order given by the Azure Emperor before his death?
“However, you need bother yourself no longer with this matter. In any case, Qingcheng wishes to go out for a walk, why don’t you accompany her?” Old Gu sighed.

Qin Wentian glanced at Old Gu before shifting his eyes to Mo Qingcheng. How could he not understand Old Gu’s intentions?
Those from the Azure Emperor Palace thought his strength was merely at the 8th level of Arterial Circulation, and had even witnessed how Yue Qingfeng had injured him. Naturally, they would not suspect him. However, both Old Gu and Mo Qingcheng should have already guessed that he was the one who killed Yue Qingfeng. There was no absolute guarantee that his strength would remain hidden and thus they wished for him to leave temporarily, staying out of the line of sight of those from the Azure Emperor Palace.
And, when talking about leaving, it was about temporarily leaving Chu. Currently, Chu was embroiled in the chaotic struggles between the rebels and the Royal Clan, as well as the feud between both academies. In addition to that, both parties from the Nine Mystical Palace and Azure Emperor Palace had also arrived. In these troubled times, the academy wished for him to be far away from the conflict.
This was the only way so that Qin Wentian wouldn’t be in danger.
After several moments, Qin Wentian nodded his head heavily as he replied, “Okay.”
“Make your preparations, and leave immediately as soon as you’re done.” Old Gu patted Qin Wentian on his shoulders as he departed.

“Let me first say goodbye to my Father and Sister,” Qin Wentian said to Mo Qingcheng.

“I’ll wait for you here.” Mo Qingcheng nodded.
Qin Wentian bid farewell to his family and close friends, instructing those who wished to leave that they must only do so under the protection of the Emperor Star Academy. After which, he met up once more with Mo Qingcheng, and together they sneaked quietly out of the academy, before flying away on Mo Qingcheng’s white crane.
The white crane flew westwards. Qin Wentian stood on top it, casting his gaze at the gradually disappearing Royal Capital. In his eyes, there were traces of attachment and also of reluctance.

Qin Wentian agreed to Old Gu’s suggestions because he clearly knew that in the current situation, he didn’t even have the strength and qualification to battle. Thus, he chose to leave Chu for the time-being.
“I will be back soon. Very soon,” Qin Wentian vowed in his heart. There were already too many people in the Royal Capital that he couldn’t bear to part with.

He was truly reluctant to leave, but he needed to strengthen his power.
“What are you thinking about?” Mo Qingcheng asked in a low voice, standing at Qin Wentian’s side.
“Qingcheng, thank you. We should part ways now, and you should return to the academy. I may need to journey somewhere extremely far away.” Qin Wentian glanced at Mo Qingcheng, a gentle smile adorning his lips.
“But we agreed that you must accompany me for a walk.” Mo Qingcheng pouted as she gazed at Qin Wentian with a hint of rebuke in her eyes.

Qin Wentian could only smile bitterly. As he placed his hands on Mo Qingcheng’s shoulders he spoke with seriousness, “I really need to go to a faraway place, and it may be exceedingly dangerous. I don’t want you to be at risk because of me.”
Mo Qingcheng quietly gazed at Qin Wentian, not speaking a word. Her peerless, unmatched countenance of beauty, was so close to him. Her limpid eyes akin to Autumn water held traces of heartfelt worry in them, causing warm currents to fill Qin Wentian’s heart.

Reaching out with his hands, his fingers moved towards Mo Qingcheng’s visage. His heart was pounding madly; he had never been this nervous in his life before.
Finally, Qin Wentian’s fingers touched her face, her smooth and gentle skin sent shivers down Qin Wentian spine, causing his heart to palpitate even wilder. He looked intently at Mo Qingcheng, as though afraid he had angered her.

“I’ll go with you.” Mo Qingcheng whispered, gazing back at him.
Qin Wentian smiled reluctantly, seeing the resolute expression in the eyes of Mo Qingcheng. The look was mixed with hidden bitterness, as though she was daring him to disagree, and so he could only nod his head in acquiescence.
“That’s better.” Mo Qingcheng smiled, causing Qin Wentian’s heartbeat to quicken. This was the first time he’d seen her smiling at such close proximity. She was too stunning, too breathtaking.
“Have you not taken enough advantage yet?” Pouting, Mo Qingcheng glared at Qin Wentian. Stunned into realization, only now did Qin Wentian remove his trembling hands, as he sat back on the white crane, feeling a sweetness in his heart. Only with Mo Qingcheng would he experience these emotions that seemed a mixture of warmth and sweetness.
Mo Qingcheng sat down beside Qin Wentian, as the white crane increased its speed further. A fiendishly handsome young man sitting together with a celestial beauty, drifting through the clouds like a pair of immortals.
“Where are we going? Mo Qingcheng asked with a gentle smile on her face.
Qin Wentian retrieved the map, studying the X-mark before replying, “The Demon Continent, we will fly according to the path outlined on the map. I’m afraid we will still need a great deal of time before we arrive.”
“Where did you get this map from?” Mo Qingcheng inquired, as puzzlement painted her face.
“9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion. This was left behind by the Azure Emperor, Dicang. When your grandpa told us the secret of the Azure Emperor, I guessed that it had an extremely high probability of being hidden in the location marked on the map.” Qin Wentian pointed to the X-mark.

Mo Qingcheng trembled slightly as her expressions blanked, stunned by the trust Qin Wentian placed in her. Without reservation, Qin Wentian had actually told her the location of the Azure Emperor’s secret.

As she thought of this, sweetness blossomed in her heart, and she smiled and nodded. She was extremely happy that Qin Wentian trusted her so much.
Gentle gusts of wind blew upon their bodies as Qin Wentian held the map. The white crane continued flying westwards, across mountains, rivers, towns and villages.
This place was the furthest Qin Wentian had been to, ever since he could form memories. Similarly, it was the same for Mo Qingcheng. She had never been so far away from Chu before.
Their hearts were filled with apprehension, but despite this, there was also warmth. This was because their travelling companion was none other than each other.
Within both their hearts, for the first time in their lives, the seeds of love began to sprout.

Chapter 179: Fairy Qingmei

A few thousand li away from the outskirts of the Demon Capital, there was a vast forested region so huge that it seemed without boundaries, stretching across an inexhaustible expanse.
At dawn, atop this massive wilderness, there appeared a white crane.
Mounted on top of the crane, there was a fiendishly handsome young man as well as an extremely beautiful, pure-looking girl. The girl’s head rested gently against his shoulders, leaning her body lightly upon his.
The young man gradually opened his eyes, but remained motionless, afraid that his movements would disturb the girl.
These two were none other than Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng.
Mo Qingcheng’s eyelashes fluttered, as she slowly woke up. Her eyes were like crystals, sparkling with a pure glow and then flickered, her countenance reddening as she moved her head slowly away from him.
“You woke.” Qin Wentian gazed at the somewhat tired face of Mo Qingcheng, and a faint feeling of heartbreak flashed in his heart. On their journey to this place, they had gotten lost, taken many detours, and spent almost a month on the back of the white crane. Although the white crane’s flying speed was several times faster than theirs, it still had its limits as it was merely a 7th-level Demonic Beast after all.
“Mm…” Mo Qingcheng nodded lightly. A glow of fascination shone in her eyes, the mountain range was so vast that they couldn’t see its end. In comparison, the Dark Forest would at most only fill up a corner of this region.
Qin Wentian retrieved the map and studied it, after which he smiled to Mo Qingcheng. “We will arrive soon, help me guide the crane’s flying direction.”
“Okay.” Mo Qingcheng nodded in agreement as the white crane continued flying forwards. Despite knowing they were close, half a day passed and they still had yet to discover the location marked on the map.
“Maybe we are flying in the wrong direction.” Mo Qingcheng furrowed her brows lightly. In this huge expanse of land, there was a high probability they were flying off course by several degrees.
“I see people over there.” Qin Wentian pointed as he stared ahead at a group of cultivators, all of them mounted on flying demonic beasts.

The cultivators also noticed the white crane, and flew closer , gradually nearing it. As they took a better look at the two of them, their eyes couldn’t help but sparkle. A young man with devastating good looks and a breathtakingly stunning young woman, they couldn’t help but stare for several moments at the couple.
“Are you all heading to the Demon Mountain City?” Someone within the group directed the question to both of them.

“So there really is a Demon Mountain City,” Qin Wentian quietly mused as he stared at the map in his hands.

“Yes, how far are we from there?” Qin Wentian replied.
“You guys are already quite close to it already,” said a young man within the group as he stared at Mo Qingcheng. Her beauty far surpassed that of his other female travelling companions.
“We need to rush.” said the female cultivator beside him, furrowing her brows in displeasure. The female was tall and extremely beautiful, and elegantly wore a blue dress. However when compared to Mo Qingcheng, her radiance dimmed and could only serve as a backdrop to further enhance Mo Qingcheng’s beauty. Hence, seeing the expression in the eyes of her male travelling companions she was naturally unhappy.
“Fine.” A few of the males were more obedient, steering their mounts away from the white crane. Despite doing so, there was still some lingering attachment in the eyes of the young man from earlier.
Qin Wentian smiled wryly as he glanced at Mo Qingcheng. As the saying went, ‘femme fatale’ – women who are too beautiful would naturally attract the attention of others. He still didn’t know whether it was the right decision to bring her along.
“Are you unhappy?” Mo Qingcheng whispered, noticing his expression.
“I didn’t like the way they kept looking at you.” Qin Wentian shrugged and smiled. “But oh well, their eyes belong to them, I can only try to adapt.”

“Are you jealous?” Mo Qingcheng’s dazzling eyes twinkled. Qin Wentian said nothing, and she took his silence as acceptance, causing a feeling of sweetness to blossom in her heart.
“Did you bring a change of clothes?” Mo Qingcheng abruptly asked.
“Yeah.” Qin Wentian nodded his head.
“Show me your other set of clothes.” Mo Qingcheng smiled, and while he didn’t understand her intent, Qin Wentian still took out the other clothes he prepared for the trip. As he stared dumbfoundedly, Mo Qingcheng wrapped a piece of his clothing around her body, covering her gracefully exquisite figure. Tearing a strip of fabric off yet another set of clothing, she tied up her long hair and wrapped a strip as a bandana around her head. The overall look, appeared somewhat incongruous, yet with also a hint of masculinity.

“How do I look?” Mo Qingcheng spread her hands as she asked.

Qin Wentian contemplated her appearance; her bearing may have resembled the male form, but there was still no way to mask her jade-white skin and beautiful countenance. But in spite of this, her current oddly attired figure wasn’t as attention-drawing as before.

Humans would always love to make themselves look good, so the fact that Mo Qingcheng would choose to dress herself in this way moved Qin Wentian’s heart. Reaching out, he held onto the dainty hands of Mo Qingcheng.

Mo Qingcheng and Qin Wentian finally saw the Demon Mountain City as outlined in the map. As the white crane prepared to land, Mo Qingcheng gasped, an expression of wonder shone on her face.

The entire city was surrounded by towering stone peaks, as though it were a part of the mountains, it emanated an air of majesty like a divine work of nature.

The surrounding peaks were all too vast and gigantic, with the effect of diminishing the city’s appearance when looked at from the sky. In reality, this city wasn’t smaller than that of the Royal Capital of Chu. It was difficult to imagine such a lively city existed out in the middle of nowhere, with many people living within its walls.

“Let’s dismount,” Qin Wentian said in a low voice, as the white crane landed within the Demon Mountain City. Aside from signs of many humans living within the city, there were also crowds of demonic beasts roaming about. These beasts were not like those that were controlled by humans, but rather, they moved about of their own volition, actually living in harmony with the humans. What a strange place, and how aptly named. It was no wonder they called it the Demon Mountain City.
Qin Wentian retrieved the map once again; the mark indicated a palace of immense size located in the middle of the Demon Mountain City.

“The Azure Emperor’s secret wasn’t hidden in the Emperor Star Academy. Instead, there was only this map. “If this palace really hides a heaven-defying cultivation art allowing one to have multiple Yuanfus, what sort of tests would be waiting for me?” Qin Wentian thought to himself, as he and Mo Qingcheng strolled about the city.
Suddenly, the earth shuddered. Tremors could be felt as a berserk demonic beast galloped on the pathway, causing the crowd to give way to it.
Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng turned around in time to see an extremely savage looking Hawk-eye Lion dashing towards them. Immense power could be felt in its steps, and a youth mounted on the lion roared to the crowd ahead, “Get lost!”
They moved to the side of the streets as the Hawk-eye Lion rushed over. The youth mounted on the back of the demonic lion possessed eagle-like eyes , sharp and imposing. He swept a glance over to Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng, and upon seeing the incomparably elegant face of Mo Qingcheng clad in a male’s robes, he opened his mouth and spat out flames. The intense flames gushed towards the pair as they both retreated backwards, frowns lining their faces.
A demon-like smile painted the youth’s countenance, as he gazed at Mo Qingcheng. “If this is a woman, her beauty is definitely of a higher quality than those from the Celestial Lake Palace.”
After which, he laughed uproariously and departed.
Upon hearing his words, the crowd swept their gazes over to Mo Qingcheng. Indeed, although dressed in the robes of a male, anyone could tell that she was a peerless beauty just by looking at her.
Qin Wentian frowned, only to see Mo Qingcheng pulling his hands along. “Let’s hurry to our destination.”
Mo Qingcheng understood that since they were outsiders, it was better to keep a low profile. Over here, experts were as common as clouds, unlike the small country of Chu. It was always better to be safe than sorry.
“I apologise…” Qin Wentian sighed, blaming himself for his lack of strength. Mo Qingcheng wouldn’t have to put up with any of this if he had more power.
“If you are sorry, all the more reason for you to hurry up and get stronger.” Mo Qingcheng laughed. They hastened their steps, and as they finally arrived at the map’s marked location, their eyes beheld a palace of immense size in front of them. Above the palace gate, was a huge arch inscribed with three gigantic words – Celestial Lake Palace.
This was none other than the Celestial Lake Palace mentioned by the arrogant youth mounted on the demonic lion earlier. This was also the place indicated in the Azure Emperor’s map.
“Ai,” a voice exclaimed in surprise, coming from a group of cultivators walking in the direction of Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng. Accompanying these people, were none other than the young man and woman they had met as they flew here.
“Seems like we have a predestined affinity, do you guys also wish to visit the celestial lake?” the young man inquired. He was extremely happy to see Mo Qingcheng again.
“What kind of place is the celestial lake?” Qin Wentian asked curiously. He wanted to be clear on the exact reason the map of Dicang (Azure Emperor) had marked this place.
“The Celestial Lake Palace is the symbol of the Demon Mountain City, founded by the Demonic Fairy Qingmei 3,000 years ago. With 3,000 years of time, the city gradually developed to what it was today. In the past, this place was a land of desolation, only inhabited by the demonic beasts, but look at how bustling the atmosphere of this place is today. Not only that, there are many celestial beauties within the Celestial Lake Palace, all of them exceptionally beautiful.
The young man laughed as he continued, “Naturally, if those beauties of the Celestial Lake Palace were to compare themselves to her, she would still come out superior.”
After which, he swept his gaze over to Mo Qingcheng again, an inscrutable expression marking his eyes.
“3,000 years ago,” Qin Wentian mumbled. In that case, she was of the same era as the Azure Emperor. But why was she called the Demonic Fairy Qingmei? Could she be a demonic beast that had eventually taken on the form of a human?
“Since the Celestial Lake Palace only accepts female disciples, why are there so many people coming here?” Qin Wentian inquired again.
“Yeah, Fairy Qingmei only accepts females as her disciples, and they must all be extremely beautiful. To understand her reasons for not accepting male disciples, we must first talk about the legends relating to the Azure Emperor and Fairy Qingmei. In the past, the Azure Emperor was ranked first out of the 36 starlords. Do you understand how awe-inspiring that was? Despite the admiration and love of countless women, he rejected them all for a single woman. A beautiful story about the love between a human and a demon, it touched the hearts of a few but incurred the scorn and hatred of many others. In the end, for reasons unknown, the Azure Emperor abandoned Fairy Qingmei, causing her love for him to turn into hate, to the point where it was rumored she pursued the Azure Emperor, seeking his death. And when the Azure Emperor abruptly disappeared, the Fairy Qingmei could only return to the Demon Mountain City, living in seclusion.”
The young man seemed to be in extremely high spirits, speaking with assurance, as though he intentionally wanted to show off his knowledge. “This humble me is named Yi Xiang, and I come from the Demon Continent. I wonder, how should I address the two of you?”
“I’m Qin Wentian, and this is my girlfriend,” Qin Wentian replied indifferently, but his heart shivered with excitement.
If the Fairy Qingmei really did have a relationship with the Azure Emperor in the past, this meant that he was in the right place. There was no mistake; this palace was the very spot marked on the map of Dicang.

Chapter 180: Ouyang Kuangsheng

Upon hearing Qin Wentian refer to her as his girlfriend, an expression of shyness shimmered within the depths of her beautiful eyes. A sweet smile adorned her face, indicating that her heart had already agreed and approved this relationship .
However, Mo Qingcheng also felt somewhat amazed, had she really fallen in love with this guy? If it were a year ago, she would definitely not feel this way.
Upon hearing his words, disappointment could be seen clouding the features of Yi Xiang. The reason he wormed his way into being friends with Qin Wentian was naturally because of Mo Qingcheng’s beauty.

“I see.” Yi Xiang smiled with a nod, silently cursing the dogshit luck of Qin Wentian. Exactly what kind of background did he have to cause Mo Qingcheng to fall in love with him?
The moment he thought of this, Yi Xiang tried to probe more as he asked, “Doesn’t Brother Qin know the reason we are here? Which state city in the nine continents is Brother Qin from?”
“I truly have no idea, I’m not from any of the nine state cities.” Qin Wentian casually replied, not bothering to explain in detail.
“As to why they named it the Celestial Lake Palace, this was due to the natural celestial lake found within the palace. The lake was of especially great help to cultivators below the Heavenly Dipper Realm. There was a huge commotion during the year that Fairy Qingmei discovered the lake, with many powerful experts seeking to possess it. But what sort of character was the Azure Emperor? He was ranked first among the 36 heavenly starlords! On account of the Azure Emperor, even the various overlords of the nine continents had to give face, and not fight Fairy Qingmei for the celestial lake.”
Yi Xiang explained, “After news of the Azure Emperor’s disappearance was made known, many other powers began to voice their objections, not wishing Fairy Qingmei to possess the celestial lake alone. Fairy Qingmei then issued a proclamation allowing talented youths from the nine continents to come visit any time. As long as they could pass the tests she designed, they would be able to enjoy the benefits of the celestial lake. It was only then did the other powers cease their protests. After all, no one wanted to offend the extremely long-lived celestial demoness.

Only then did Qin Wentian understand. Demons were different from humans; a majority of demonic beasts had an extremely slow cultivation rate. However, their lifespan was much longer compared to humans. Especially for those demonic beasts that had broken through to the Heavenly Dipper Realm, after obtaining forms of humanity, they would have a lifespan of around 5,000 to 6,000 years. In consideration of that, the other powers naturally wouldn’t dare to push Fairy Qingmei too far.
“If that’s the case, does this mean that all the cultivators are here because they wish to borrow the celestial lake’s powers to aid in their cultivation?” Qin Wentian swept a glance at the crowded streets, and indeed, young cultivators of both genders flooded the area. They were about 25-26 years of age and many had extraordinary demeanors. None of them would dare to come here without possessing a certain level of strength.
Far off in the distance, a gaze was directed over to Qin Wentian as he observed the crowd., The onlooker laughed demonically; it was none other than the arrogant young man from before, the one who rode the Hawk-eye Lion.
Yi Xiang followed the gaze of Qin Wentian, and upon seeing the young man, his countenance underwent a slight change. Speaking in a whisper, “That’s the beastman named Shiki, from the Beast King Hall, one of the hegemonic powers of the Demon Continent.”
“Beastman?” Qin Wentian’s eyes flickered.
Yi Xiang sidled up to Qin Wentian as he lightly remarked, “The master of the Beast King Hall is a demonic lion at the Heavenly Dipper Realm. The beast king is extremely lecherous, and has slept with many human wives and concubines. With both demonic and human blood flowing in their veins, their descendants were known as beastmen. This Shiki is a descendant of the beast king himself.
“Hey brat, what are you mumbling about?” Shiki stated coldly, glancing over at Yi Xiang, causing him to shiver. With a smile, Yi Xiang quickly replied, “Just casually chatting.”
“Oh, is that so?” Shiki shifted his gaze to the young woman behind Yi Xiang, licking his lips, as an expression of lust appeared in his eyes. At his actions, the young woman felt intense anger boiling in her heart; the descendants of the beast king were all incomparably licentious in their shameless behaviour.
At that moment, a few ladies clad in white walked out of the Celestial Lake Palace to stand in front of the crowd, each appearing as beautiful as a celestial maiden.
The crowd’s attention shifted over and saw the graceful silhouettes clad in muslin, upon which the majority of people lost their senses as they stared in rapture.
It appeared that the rumours the Fairy Qingmei only accepted exceptionally beautiful women as her disciples were true. In addition to gaining permission to use the celestial lake, those who passed the tests could also choose a female disciple to be their dao companion, provided that the female disciple agreed. This enheartened many to pass, igniting their fighting spirit.

This rule had never been broken despite the passage of thousands of years. Nobody understood the Fairy Qingmei’s reasoning for doing this.
“Everyone, please, you may enter the Celestial Lake Palace now.” The celestial maidens led the way, as the crowd followed behind, stepping into the Celestial Lake Palace.
The interior of the palace was splendid in its magnificence. The cultivators entered a long hallway with pavilions situated to the left and right. Every pavilion was graceful and unique, with each of them already occupied by people. The majority of the crowd reserved cold looks on their faces, upon seeing the heads of the residents peeking out. These people should be similar to them, coming here to take the test. What foolish dreams they had; the Celestial Lake Palace opens to the public once a month, and only a total of seven people would be able to enter the celestial lake each time.
And this month, there were numerous cultivators coming to try their luck, it wouldn’t be easy for anyone to stand above the rest.
Qin Wentian contemplated the Celestial Lake Palace, feeling wonder in his heart. To think that the palace design of Fairy Qingmei would be so charming, it’s scenic beauty was akin to a dream-like quality. At the end of the long hallway, they arrived at an area filled with residential buildings, arranged in picturesque disorder. Located right ahead, there was a flight of stairs and at the end of the stairway, was the celestial palace.

“Is Fairy Qingmei still around?” Qin Wentian mused, he could already confirm that the location in the map of Dicang was referring to this place, but had no idea as to what should be done after finding it.
According to Yi Xiang, legend has it that the Azure Emperor abandoned the Fairy Qingmei. However, Qin Wentian had doubts. There should be many things concealed within, otherwise the Azure Emperor wouldn’t have left the map scroll on the 9th level of the Heavenly Star Pavilion, and would not have ordered the headmaster of each generation to stand guard there.
Qin Wentian had a bold hypothesis, maybe the greatest secret of the Azure Emperor wasn’t in the Azure Emperor Palace, but was left under the protection of Fairy Qingmei instead.
Naturally, Qin Wentian came to this conclusion only because he had the map of Dicang. Back then, after those powerful old freaks witnessed the Azure Emperor battling it out with Fairy Qingmei, it would never have crossed their minds the possibility of her guarding the hiding place of the Azure Emperor’s greatest secret.
“Shiki, you non-human, non-demon piece of shit dares to come here, too? Are you not afraid that I, your father, will turn you into something neither human nor demon?” A loud, clear voice resounded, causing Yi Xiang to tremble in shock. Who was it that dared to publicly humiliate Shiki of the Beast King Hall like this?
Turning his head, Yi Xiang saw a youth clad in blue robes, about 18 years of age. The young man had a squarish face, with huge eyes, and was laughing uproariously at Shiki.
“Ouyang Kuangsheng.” Yi Xiang drew in a breath. The cultivators who came here wouldn’t have too high a level of cultivation. Usually, youths below the 3rd level of Yuanfu would pay a visit to the Celestial Lake Palace; the majority of them would be at the 9th level of Arterial Circulation, wishing to borrow the mystical effects of the Celestial Lake to breakthrough to Yuanfu. The Yuanfu formed with the mystical effects of the celestial lake would be larger than usual, enabling the cultivator to store even more Astral Energy within.
Ouyang Kuangsheng was also at the 9th level of Arterial Circulation, and considering his age, his cultivation base still being at the peak of Arterial Circulation Realm wasn’t something to be proud of. In the nine continents, there were numerous youths already at the Yuanfu level. However, there was a faction of cultivators who placed more importance in consolidating foundations, done by increasing their level of affinity and sensory abilities first. Thus, in order to ease their future cultivation pathway, there were many who chose to condense an Astral Soul only after a long period of time, resulting in a later age to start cultivation compared to others.
This Ouyang Kuangsheng belonged to the second type of cultivators. He paid no heed to the thoughts of others, and only began cultivation after the age of 16. Not just outsiders, even within his clan, there were many who looked down on him.
However, in one night, Ouyang Kuangsheng shocked everyone when he condensed an Astral Soul from the 4th Heavenly Layer. The entire Ouyang Clan was in an uproar, silently admiring Ouyang Kuangsheng’s resolution, having determined that he was a character worthy of being nurtured.
Indeed, in the next two years, Ouyang Kuangsheng’s cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds, quickly reaching the peak of Arterial Circulation. Although he was slower compared to some others, both of the Astral Souls he condensed were from the 4th Heavenly Layer. Thus, his combat prowess was extremely tyrannical and not many on the same level could defeat him.
Shiki was another such tyrannical character; had it been any other cultivator with a cultivation base at the 9th level of Arterial Circulation other than Ouyang Kuangsheng, he would have definitely slaughtered them for speaking to him in such a manner. However, he wasn’t confident he had the ability to defeat Ouyang Kuangsheng.
“Ouyang Kuangsheng, remember what you just said,” Shiki coldly remarked.
“You think as your father, I would be afraid of you?” Ouyang Kuangsheng continued laughing loudly as a beautiful young lady appeared beside him. Upon seeing her, an expression of extreme fascination appeared on the face of Yi Xiang. She too, accompanied Ouyang Kuangsheng.
It seemed that this time around, the journey to the Celestial Lake Palace was filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons, with the rumor that Yao Sheng from the Skydemon Sect had also arrived earlier as well. He was also an extremely hard-to-deal with character and at this thought, Yi Xiang gradually lost his confidence, and felt somewhat depressed.

“First off, would everyone please choose your place of residence? You are all welcome to stay in the still empty pavilions. There are still a few more days before the date of the tests,” announced those from the Celestial Lake Palace, and the crowd dispersed, choosing the pavilion that they wanted to stay in.
“Lets stay there.” Qin Wentian pointed at a pavilion, as he smiled at Mo Qingcheng.
“Okay.” Mo Qingcheng agreed, and together they walked towards and entered the pavilion. It was split into two levels; the first level consisted of a living room while the second level consisted of two bed rooms, just big enough for the two of them.
Walking to the balcony outside the bedroom, Qin Wentian discovered that Yi Xiang and his companion chose the pavilion opposite to them, while Ouyang Kuangsheng chose the residence beside Yi Xiang.
“Hey kid, where are you from?” Curiosity flickered in Ouyang Kuangsheng’s eyes as he fixed his gaze towards Qin Wentian.
Qin Wentian was 17 years of age, fiendishly handsome. His eyes had an incredible depth to them, possessing an air of uniqueness.
“I’m from a very small country, I don’t think you would have heard of it.” Qin Wentian laughed. “How about you?”
Ouyang Kuangsheng stared blankly, but quickly recovered with a grin on his face. Yi Xiang in the next pavilion, suddenly added, “Brother Qin, this person is Ouyang Kuangsheng, a young elite from the Ouyang Clan of the Azure Continent.”
As Yi Xiang made the introduction, he nodded his head towards Ouyang Kuangsheng as though he was intent on expressing his good will. However, Qin Wentian had no concept of the Ouyang Clan’s power, and didn’t know who Ouyang Kuangsheng was.
“The Azure Continent, the Azure Emperor Palace should be located there,” Qin Wentian mumbled to himself, and upon hearing his words, Ouyang Kuangsheng was momentarily startled, before laughing earnestly. What an interesting kid. Although the Azure Emperor Palace was incomparably glorious in the past, their power had gradually waned over the years. How could they still be mentioned on equal terms with the Ouyang Clan?
Yi Xiang was speechless as well. Could it be that in the eyes of Qin Wentian, the Azure Emperor Palace had a higher level of importance compared to the Ouyang Clan?

Chapter 181: Entrance to the Celestial Lake

Yi Xiang stared at Qin Wentian as he stated, “Brother Qin, although the Ouyang Clan and the Azure Emperor Palace were both situated in the Azure Continent, their levels cannot be compared to each other. The Ouyang Clan’s power can be ranked amongst the top few within the Nine Continents. Not only that, out of all the younger generations of the Ouyang Clan, Brother Ouyang could be considered one of their top talents, with both his astral souls condensed from the 4th Heavenly Layer.”

Qin Wentian’s heart thudded slightly as he cast a glance at Ouyang Kuangsheng. It was extremely rare for someone to condense both their Astral Souls from the 4th Heavenly Layer; the Nine Continents were indeed a place filled with crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

“Stop kissing my ass, look at my age, I’ve not even stepped into Yuanfu. There’s nothing for me to boast about.” Ouyang Kuangsheng laughed straightforwardly, as though he didn’t give a damn.

Yi Xiang’s lips trembled; his intention to fawn seemed obvious from his tone and choice of words.

“Brother Qin, although this time around there’s no hope of you seizing the opportunity to dip into the celestial lake, you can still consider this to be a widening of your perspectives.” Yi Xiang quickly shifted the conversation back to Qin Wentian, his tone sounding slightly boastful, as he felt gratified to see how seriously Qin Wentian listened to him.

After chatting for a while longer, Qin Wentian returned to his room with his heart involuntarily filled with worry regarding the storm in Chu.

Compared to those characters out there, the geniuses from Chu undoubtedly lost their splendor. And with his current strength, he was unable to be of any help regarding the chaotic tempest brewing in Chu. Although he had inherited the map of Dicang from the Azure Emperor, he was still totally clueless as to what he should do next. Qin Wentian could only take one step at a time now.

“What are you thinking about?” Mo Qingcheng entered the room. Upon seeing her incompatible attire, Qin Wentian couldn’t help but laugh, causing Mo Qingcheng to glare at him.

“I’m thinking that if your clan members knew that I’ve kidnapped you to such a faraway place, would they go all out and fight me to the death?” Qin Wentian gently smiled.

“Pfft, in that case, you’d have to bear the responsibility.” Mo Qingcheng laughed.

“Bear the responsibility?” A bright light shone in Qin Wentian’s eyes, as he stared at Mo Qingcheng intently, causing the mischievous expression on Mo Qingcheng’s face to turn into one of extreme shyness as she replied, “You rascal.”

After which, Mo Qingcheng ran out of the room in a fluster, causing Qin Wentian to smile with fondness.

In the following days, there would be numerous people arriving daily. Qin Wentian glanced down from his balcony and saw two rows of silhouettes walking in a line. A cultivator leading one of the lines was a girl of extreme beauty and upon seeing her, Qin Wentian couldn’t help but freeze slightly in surprise before he smiled and called out, “Hey, Qian Mengyu.”
Qian Mengyu glanced upwards and at the sight of Qin Wentian, an expression of astonishment appeared on her face. Ever since that escapade in the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds, she had sent people to investigate news of Qin Wentian. The information report returned stating that in one of the countries under the administrations of Nine Mystical Palace, there was indeed a person named Qin Wentian in Chu. It was also reported that he was exceptionally famous, but other than that, she didn’t know anything else about him.

“What are you doing here?” Qian Mengyu smiled. So a small country like Chu also knew of the existence of the Celestial Lake Palace?

“The same reason as you.” Qin Wentian laughed. Being able to meet here could also be counted as a form of fate, and thus Qin Wentian’s attitude was much warmer now compared to back then in the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds. After all, Qian Mengyu had aided him once, not to mention her sword technique, Nine Swords of Life, may indicate a possible connection to Gongyang Hong.

“Then, I will be staying there.” Qian Mengyu pointed to a pavilion beside that of Qin Wentian, as she walked up to the second level.

“This time around, Greencloud Pavilion sent out many disciples. The tests of the Celestial Lake Palace are exceedingly dangerous, so why don’t you join us? At the very least, we can keep a look out for each other,” Qian Mengyu remarked. In her heart, she wanted to help Qin Wentian. This fellow didn’t have any kind of powerful background to speak of, he must have faced countless dangers before making his way here. Since they had crossed paths, it was natural for her to extend a helping hand to him.

“Right.” Qin Wentian nodded his head, not thinking too deeply into it as he asked, “Can I ask you something? Is the Nine Swords of Life a unique sword-type innate technique belonging to your Greencloud Pavilion?”

“It can be considered so.” Qian Mengyu nodded, continuing, “This set of sword techniques contain many transformations, and an undying will. For me, my mastery level is only at the tip of the iceberg, however back then my aunt had cultivated this sword technique to an incredible heights. She was able to manifest the sword energy of this technique to attack using a sword-type divine imprint, further enhancing its might.”

“Aunt?” Qin Wentian’s heart pounded. Could her aunt be the woman Gongyang Hong loved?

To be precise, weren’t the four human-type Divine Inscription Paintings inscribed by the woman Gongyang Hong loved?!

“Why do you ask? Do you train in sword techniques as well?” Qian Mengyu laughed.

“No, just casually asking. Your aunt must be very powerful,” Qin Wentian remarked.

“Yeah! Not only is my aunt extremely beautiful, her talent in cultivation is exceedingly high as well. There are many others out to pursue her but sadly, she’s trapped by matters of the heart.” Qian Mengyu sighed, before stiffening. Why was she talking to Qin Wentian about such things.

Seeing the warm smile on Qin Wentian’s gentle countenance, Qian Mengyu could only laugh bitterly in her heart before abruptly turning away. Although this young man’s talent wasn’t unacceptable, if he were to truly fall in love with her, she would certainly reject him. She was only helping him out because of their coincidental meeting.

Qin Wentian was unaware of the mistaken thoughts running through Qian Mengyu’s mind. Seeing that she had no more interest in continuing the conversation, he too turned to walk back into his room as he saw Mo Qingcheng quietly sitting there.

“I once had a chance meeting with her, and there’s a high probability that she has some connection with Senior Gongyang,” Qin Wentian explained. Mo Qingcheng gazed at him as she nodded and laughed; the sound of her laughter was extremely endearing.
Qin Wentian retrieved one of the four paintings gifted by Gongyang Hong. This painting was none other than the Divine Inscription Painting of the Nine Swords of Life, however, the inscriptions etched in the painting only contained a kind of concept; there was no way to use it for attacking purposes. Qin Wentian had once received memories of divine imprints before. If he could utilise some of the complicated 3rd-level imprints stored in his memory, how tyrannical would his attacks be then?
Qin Wentian had already established in the past that divine imprints and innate techniques shared the same roots.

His eyes gradually brightened, but his excitement was soon replaced by a look of unease. If he wanted to use 3rd-level divine imprints as a direct attack, the power behind such a move would be extremely dominating. The downside was that it would require him to exhaust a large amount of his Divine Yuan Energy. Before stepping into Yuanfu, he would only be able to execute this kind of attack a couple of times at the most, before running dry of energy.

A gentle smile appeared on Mo Qingcheng’s face as she saw the serious look of contemplation on Qin Wentian’s countenance. What was this fellow thinking of to be so engrossed within his thoughts?
“At the Astral River Hall, after seeing the attack of the multitude of fist-lights, I comprehended the concept of the second stance of the Great Dream Halberd Art – Fallen Star. However, if I were to use a sword-type Divine Yuan to amplify my attacks…” A sharp glint of light flashed in Qin Wentian’s eyes; if what he imagined was reality, Yuanfu realm opponents may not be undefeatable after all.
Inclining his head, Qin Wentian saw Mo Qingcheng smiling at him with a tender look of gentleness in her eyes. Warmth filled his heart, and a sudden impulse overtook him.
“What are you thinking about?” Mo Qingcheng still hadn’t noticed the peculiar look on Qin Wentian’s face. As the sound of her voice faded, Qin Wentian had already enveloped her into a hug, gently kissing her on the cheek, causing her to be stunned as though struck by a bolt of lightning.
Abruptly, Qin Wentian stood up and ran away. Only then did Mo Qingcheng come back to her senses. Her face instantly flushed with redness, giggling as she stared at Qin Wentian running away. She couldn’t imagine a moment more beautiful than this.
Qin Wentian didn’t come out from his room after that. Mo Qingcheng occasionally peeked in on him, only to see him silently meditating with Yuan Meteor Stones clutched in his hands.
Currently, Astral Energy was unceasingly being gathered within Qin Wentian’s body, condensing into sword-type Divine Yuan Energy, as an aura of unparalleled sharpness emanated out from him.
All sword attacks were incredibly sharp, and if he were to augment his existing attacks with his present sword-type, Divine Yuan Energy, the power of his attacks would undoubtedly rise to another level. However, to forcibly convert all his Astral Energy into Divine Yuan Energy would exhaust a great amount of Yuan Meteor Stones. Luckily, the current him wasn’t lacking in cultivation resources.

Apart from this, he could create a dreamscape, to observe whether his idea was correct.
The next day, people from the Celestial Lake Palace arrived to extend an invitation to them. Everyone left their pavilions and stepped into the long hallway, walking in the direction of the Celestial Lake Palace.
“So many people.” Qin Wentian cast a glance at the long hallway swamped with people. There was at least several hundreds in the crowd.
“This amount can’t be considered many. The Grand Xia Empire is too vast, and the celestial lake is of paramount importance to cultivators at the 9th level of Arterial Circulation. Even young elites belonging to powerful clans and factions will make the trip to here. Firstly, they can immerse themselves in the waters of the celestial lake. Secondly, they can use the opportunity to temper themselves through the dangers faced on their journey over here,” Qian Mengyu explained in a low voice.
“This place is open to all? Doesn’t the Celestial Lake Palace reject anyone?” Qin Wentian asked, curiosity evident in his voice.
“Yup, this was the promise Fairy Qingmei made back then. Also, she had no need to obstruct those who came, because the weaker ones wouldn’t even see their deaths coming until too late,” Qian Mengyu explained.
The current Mo Qingcheng was dressed up as a man to avoid unnecessary trouble. She had also smeared something on her face, causing her to look even more unusual, but fortunately it completely masked her stunning countenance.
Qian Mengyu and the girl beside Ouyang Kuangsheng were also extremely beautiful. Although their beauty was just half a step inferior to Mo Qingcheng’s, they had no need to conceal their features because they were not afraid of trouble.
The Celestial Lake Palace representatives led the crowd towards a great hall. The interior was decorated extravagantly: gigantic stone pillars stood erect, and the outer edges of the hall was designed to look like the starry skies.
All the girls in the great hall were peerless in their beauty.
The crowd gathered within, and directly facing them was a pool of Astral Lake Water. This pool was extremely beautiful to gaze upon, reflecting a dazzling, radiant sheen of starlight.
“This is the entrance to the Celestial Lake. Indeed, it is a mystical place. The waters of the celestial lake are completely filled with inconceivable amounts of Astral Energy.” Many people gasped in shock.
Ahead of the great hall, a beautiful woman sat atop an Astral Throne, smiling at the crowd.
“We greet the Palace Mistress.” The crowd bowed to show their respect. A majority of the crowd snuck glances at the girls that stood to the side of the beautiful woman, expressions of unconcealed admiration evident in their eyes.
Too breathtakingly beautiful, they were akin to fireworks in the mortal world. Just merely standing there caused people in the crowd to feel ashamed of their own inferiority.
The majority of females within the crowd seemed to have lost their splendor, and even Mo Qingcheng’s eyes flickered as she commented, “They are all so beautiful.”
“We’ve finally found a female whose looks are comparable to yours.” Qin Wentian nudged Mo Qingcheng, whispering into her ears, causing her to roll her eyes at him.

“Yeah, but doesn’t her demeanor seem a bit cold?”
“Right.” Qin Wentian nodded lightly. The woman before them radiated an aura of indifference, her frigid demeanor an unapproachable wall that looked impossible to surmount.

Chapter 182: Dangers of the Refinement Grounds

One was unable to determine the age of the Palace Mistress merely from looking at her features. It was rumored that she was the successor of Fairy Qingmei, but no one knew whether or not this was true.

After Fairy Qingmei decided to live in seclusion, she created the Celestial Lake Palace and accepted female disciples, imparting her knowledge and techniques over the generations. Despite doing so, outsiders rarely caught a glimpse of her. It was as though she had already truly seen through all secular affairs and worldly attachments.

At this moment, the Palace Mistress of the Celestial Lake Palace smiled and nodded to the crowd. “If you wish to enter the celestial lake, all of you should already comprehend the danger within. I wonder how many of the young elites here are from the transcendent powers of the Nine Continents?”

“This junior over here originated from the Azure Continent, I’m Ouyang Kuangsheng from the Ouyang Clan. My clan lord inquires after the well-being of Fairy Qingmei.” Ouyang Kuangsheng exclaimed straightforwardly, taking a step forwards. After which, the girl beside him also spoke, “Wind Continent, Jiang Ting from the Jiang Clan, pays her respect to the Palace Mistress.”

Ouyang Kuangsheng was blunt and outspoken, while the female emitted a faint aura of arrogance. This was her natural disposition and not out of rudeness towards the Palace Mistress.
“Descendants of the Ouyang and Jiang Clan, please take a seat.” The Palace Mistress smiled with a nod. Chairs had already been prepared by those from the Celestial Lake Palace from earlier. Ouyang Kuangsheng and Jiang Ting did not act with fake courtesy as they seated themselves, with others from their respective clans standing behind them.
“To think that Ouyang Kuangsheng is actually together with Jiang Ting.” A strange glow passed through the eyes of many. The Ouyang Clan and the Jiang Clan, were all transcendent powers in the Nine Continents.
“Beast King Hall, Shiki,” Shiki stated indifferently as he stepped forwards. The crowd was abuzz. Evidently, those originating from transcendent-level powers in the Nine Continents were a cut above their peers, all of them majestic and an awe-inspiring sight.
“You are bestowed a seat.” The Palace Mistress laughed.
“War Continent, Wang Xiao from the Wang Clan.” Another white robed youth stepped forward, to the shocked murmurs from the surrounding people. Seeing that the Wang Clan had shown up as well, it seemed like all the transcendent powers wanted to use the expedition to the Celestial Lake Palace as a way to temper their younger generations. Those present had a cultivation base of at least the 9th level of Arterial Circulation, not to mention there were even some Yuanfu cultivators within the gathering as well.
“Yan Continent, Mu Baifei.” Another youth stepped forward. This youth was clad in a long, white robe, appearing extremely neat with a hint of delicateness. But for all that, one could sense an incredible sharpness from the middle of his brows.
Swallow Swordsman, this person was definitely a Swallow Swordsman.
“Skydemon Sect, Yao Sheng.”
“Greencloud Pavilion, Qian Mengyu.”
As several people stepped forth, the Palace Mistress granted each of them a seat. The crowd carefully observed those silhouettes that sat down, silently marking down their appearances. Any one of these individuals could become the next dazzling stars of their generation in the Nine Continents. Just Ouyang Kuangsheng alone was already extremely remarkable.
“Qin Wentian, you come over as well.” After Qian Mengyu sat down, she called out towards Qin Wentian, who still mingled in the crowd. Those from the Greencloud Pavilion all stood behind her chair.
Qin Wentian stiffened for a moment before lightly nodding his head, walking over to Qian Mengyu. Since Qian Mengyu had already spoken, it would be rude to reject her.
“Are these two also from the Azure Continent?” The Palace Mistress smiled as she regarded Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng. It seemed that regardless of whoever she met, she would still treat them as a respected guest.
“They are friends of mine, from a place named the Chu Country,” Qian Mengyu replied with a smile. A bright light flashed through the Palace Mistress’s eyes, as she stared intently at Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng.
However, the Palace Mistress quickly shifted her gaze away and greeted the crowd with a smile. “There are only seven open positions for cultivators wishing to immerse themselves in the celestial lake. All of you should already be aware of the danger level, and I shall not elaborate on that. I only hope that everyone will show mercy should they fight against each other. The time limit is one month.”
Everyone nodded their heads; they naturally understood the rules.
“Enter then, I shall not take up more of your time. However, demonic beasts are forbidden to be brought inside.” The Palace Mistress of the Celestial Lake Palace laughed, as the crowd erupted in excitement, all parties dashing towards the entrance of the celestial lake.
“Let’s go.” Qian Mengyu stood up, following the crowd to the flight of stairs descending downwards. Qin Wentian discovered that the water in the entrance of the celestial lake, didn’t share the normal properties of water, and their clothing remained dry.
“What a mystical place.” An expression of awe painted Qin Wentian’s face, as he stepped through the entrance of the celestial lake together with Mo Qingcheng. In that very instant, Qin Wentian felt a surge of mysterious energy acting on his body.
“My Yuanfu.” Mo Qingcheng’s beautiful eyes widened in surprise. After passing the entrance, she realised that the Yuanfu within her body had been completely severed from her arterial pathways.
The moment they stepped completely into the water, Qin Wentian and the rest discovered that the flight of stairs was still visible, as though they had been transported to another space filled with resplendent Astral Light. Also ahead of them, was an ancient pathway.
Qian Mengyu stared at Mo Qingcheng with astonishment in her eyes, “Don’t you all know the effects of the celestial lake’s Refinement Grounds?”
“Hmm, we’re not very clear about that.” Qin Wentian shook his head.
“Both of you are too ridiculous.” Qian Mengyu couldn’t help but berate them, “Why are you guys even here if you have no knowledge about this place? The Refinement Grounds of the Celestial Lake Palace is similar to the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds and is also one of the eighteen testing grounds of the Grand Xia Empire. There’s a mysterious surge of energy that will seal the Yuanfus of Yuanfu cultivators. Upon stepping inside, cultivators at the Yuanfu Realm would be at the peak of Arterial Circulation; they are unable to enjoy the immense amount of Astral Energy from Yuan droplets stored within their Yuanfu. If not for this, there would be no point for cultivators at the Arterial Circulation Realm to come here.”
“Naturally, even if their Yuanfu was sealed, the innate techniques cultivated by Yuanfu cultivators would obviously be stronger than those at the Arterial Circulation Realm. This was to their advantage, but could also end as unfavourable to them. Stronger innate techniques naturally meant a higher energy consumption rate. And over here, they would only be courting their own death as they have no way to replenish it from their Yuanfus.”
Qin Wentian’s gaze froze. By sealing the Yuanfus and severing the connection between them and the arterial pathways, even the task of flying would be difficult.
Over here in the Refinement Grounds of the Celestial Lake Palace, the advantages Yuanfu cultivators enjoyed were reduced to the bare minimum.
“It is said that the celestial lake was formed naturally, but with the addition of modifications by the Celestial Lake Palace, the level of danger here has risen as well. It wasn’t so easy to snatch one of the seven open spots, you guys are really too ridiculous,” Qian Mengyu coldly remarked.
Although her tone was unpleasant to hear, Qin Wentian knew that it was because of her concern for them. Naturally, he didn’t take offence and quickly replied with a smile, “Can we just follow you, then? Where is the location of the actual celestial lake?“
“The celestial lake lies at the end of the Refinement Grounds.” Qian Mengyu eyed the ancient pathway as she spoke. Qin Wentian discovered that the other cultivators had already set off, dashing ahead as though they were rushed for time.
“Mengyu, why are you telling them so much? We should hurry up and move on as well.” A girl with exquisite looking features standing at the side frowned as she glared at Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng, appearing somewhat unhappy. She didn’t know what Qian Mengyu was thinking.
“Move out then,” Qian Mengyu coldly instructed, as her group of cultivators dashed ahead with extreme speed.
Qin Wentian turned his gaze forwards; he discovered that the other cultivators on the ancient pathway purposely kept their distance from each other, all appearing to be extremely cautious. This was even more glaringly obvious when it came to the chosen ones originating from the various transcendent powers. Not only did they keep their distance, some of the other cultivators had also formed temporary alliances.
Upon witnessing this, Qin Wentian came to a sudden realisation. Since there were only seven spots available at each opening, the most dangerous thing within the Refinement Grounds would be none other than the treacherous hearts of humanity.
But even so, many people treated this as a tempering experience. He guessed that for those who made it here, they should already possess a certain level of self confidence in their own prowess.
“The Forest of Hallucination, be careful here. This place will stall us for a period of time.” Qian Mengyu surveyed the forest ahead, seeing the other cultivators dashing towards the entrance and how their presences instantly disappeared as they passed through.
“Stay behind me and follow closely.” Qian Mengyu’s countenance turned sluggish as they entered the Forest of Hallucination. Once inside, a maze materialised in the form of numerous ancient-looking trees.
Qian Mengyu waved a group of her cultivators forward. The group slowed their pace, trying to find a way out of the forested maze. However, they soon realised that there was no way for them to leave, and moreover, they had lost sight of the others.
“Indeed, the effects of this place matches what was mentioned in the rumors.” Qian Mengyu added, “The Refinement Grounds is a place to battle for survival of the fittest; luck is never counted as a factor.”

“What should we do now?” someone asked Qian Mengyu.

“We will rest here in our original spot,” Qian Mengyu spoke, as she sat down on the grass.
In the quietness of the Forest of Hallucination, a stifling pressure could be felt emanating forth from within, giving an extremely sinister feeling.

Rustling sounds rang out, and Qian Mengyu stiffened as she gazed vigilantly at her surroundings.

Swiftly after, a line of silhouettes appeared in her field of vision. They were none other than the people from the Beast King Hall, with Shiki in the lead.

Upon seeing Qian Mengyu, Shiki’s licentious smile widened as his steps slowed. The uncontrolled, voracious desires of beasts heated his eyes.

Qian Mengyu frowned, as she icily stated, “Shiki, could it be that your Beast King Hall wishes to clash with my Greencloud Pavilion? I can assure you that it won’t be a good decision.”

“Oh, is that so?” The sinister looking smile on Shiki’s face widened even further. Qian Mengyu turned her gaze aside, only to see another group of figures appear.

“Yao Sheng from the Skydemon Sect.” Qian Mengyu froze, her countenance turning extremely unsightly. The Beast King Hall and the Skydemon Sect were both transcendent powers in the Demon Continent; to think that they had actually allied together.
“You can only blame it on your own bad luck,” Yao Sheng stated sinisterly, before sweeping a glance at Qin Wentian. Of course, he still remembered this person, and their previous encounter at the Spirit Beasts Testing Grounds back then.
“Run,” Qian Mengyu whispered, causing her fellow cultivators to tremble in reaction. Despite this unfortunate timing, Qian Mengyu acted with extreme decisiveness; the Demon Continent allied forces wouldn’t be able to wipe them all out in a single swoop if they all chose to escape instead of clashing directly.

“You guys, I want her alive.” Shiki pointed to Mo Qingcheng, who was standing beside Qin Wentian, while he himself, moved towards Qian Mengyu, lust apparent in his eyes.
“NOW!” Qian Mengyu screamed as the cultivators of the Greencloud Pavilion instantly split in all directions. Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng also dashed elsewhere to a random location.
“HAHAHA!” Shiki’s footsteps caused great tremors to shake the earth, and he leapt up into the air. With a howl of malevolence, a terrifying soundwave blasted out, as an illusory form of a savage lion appeared in the air.
Right before landing on the ground, his fist ruthlessly smashed out, containing tremendous strength behind it. Due to the earlier lion’s howl, a cultivator from Qian Mengyu’s group couldn’t react in time, and when she finally came to her senses, the fist of Shiki had already come into contact, bursting her head into pieces.
Simultaneously, those from the Beast King Hall and the Skydemon Sect all acted in tandem, wishing to cleanly slaughter the cultivators from the Greencloud Pavilion.
Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng frantically dashed towards a random direction, only to see a group of cultivators from the Beast King Hall tracking their movements, following behind them with incredible speed.
Halting his steps, Qin Wentian’s ancient halberd was already in his hands as a terrifying coldness flickered in his eyes.

“Wentian, take note of your Astral Energy consumption, the road to the celestial lake is still long,” Mo Qingcheng counselled, bringing Qin Wentian back to his senses. Mo Qingcheng’s was right to warn him; he couldn’t go all out so quickly, the road ahead was still long.

This was only just the beginning.

Chapter 183: Guardian

Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng’s speed was extremely fast. By this point they were already very far away from their earlier resting spot, with a total of five others pursuing them. Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng continued dashing forwards, with no intentions of stopping, opting to conserve their strength.

A cold light glinted in the eyes of their pursuers. Their targets weren’t losing out in the slightest when it came to speed, and seeing how they were split off from their own main group, it would only spell disaster to continue chasing after the two, especially if they were to meet any groups formed by the other powers.

“People from the Beast King Hall?” At this moment, a silhouette appeared ahead. Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng slowed their steps, only to see that the new arrival was none other than Ouyang Kuangsheng.

“Ouyang Kuangsheng, this matter has nothing to do with you.” By then, the five experts from the Beast King Hall had already surrounded Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng. Sweeping their gaze about, they finally relaxed when they saw that Ouyang Kuangsheng was acting alone, without the rest of his clan members.

But Ouyang Kuangsheng was really too self-confident, to think that he would opt to travel alone.

“Mmm.” Ouyang Kuangsheng laughed as he crossed his arms in front of his chest, adopting the appearance that he was only there to watch the show.

A sharp glint of light flashed in the eyes of the leader of the five from the Beast King Hall, as an extremely chilly expression appeared on his face. “Kill the male.”

“Roger.” The robes of the four others fluttered as demonic qi emanated forth from their bodies. Two of them moved towards Qin Wentian, while the other two headed for Mo Qingcheng.

Qin Wentian’s ancient halberd was already in his hands, as a cold glint of demonic light flashed in his eyes, so cold it pervaded the bone. A demonic look replaced his earlier expression, and monstrous killing intent gushed out from him, fluttering his robes about in the air.

The two walking towards Qin Wentian attacked simultaneously. One of them struck out towards Qin Wentian, his hands transforming into the claws of an eagle, as an illusory form of an eagle appeared in midair. A terrifying demon-wind arose from the force of the attack, threatening to lacerate Qin Wentian’s body apart. The other cultivator blasted forwards with an explosive gigantic palm. In their eyes, Qin Wentian was already a dead man.
Swish~ A raging gust of wind blew as Qin Wentian slashed out tyrannically with his ancient halberd, aiming for the incoming eagle claw with a speed as fast as lightning. The terrifying energy within his strike caused the wind to howl, as an aura of sharpness could be felt emanating from it.

As sounds of piercing rang out, the ancient halberd ruptured the sharp eagle claws, penetrating through the entire arm of his opponent, right into his brain. At the same time, he raised his left hands, and executed the Falling Mountain Palms with a roar, directly matching palms with the gigantic demonic palms of his opponent. The impact from the collision creating a whirlwind storm with them standing at the centre. Only then did the opposing cultivator notice the coldness of Qin Wentian’s eyes and was suddenly struck with a sense of terror.
Qin Wentian retreated slightly, sweeping out his ancient halberd in a horizontal arc, akin to the wing slash of a Vermillion Bird. His opponent could feel a monstrous sharpness bearing down on him. With a roar of rage, he blasted out with both his palms, trying to block the attack. Qin Wentian then spat out numerous rays of sword light, each manifesting into sharp swords. One by one, the swords pierced through the head of his opponent, slaughtering him with no mercy.
If one wanted to talk about combat, not many cultivators in the 9th level of Arterial Circulation could match up to Qin Wentian.

After killing them both, Qin Wentian turned his eyes to the leader. His silhouette flickered as he abruptly disappeared from sight. However, he didn’t move in the direction of the leader but towards Mo Qingcheng instead. Bursting forth with indomitable strength, he stabbed his ancient halberd at the heads of his opponents.

Abruptly, a terrifying surge of demonic qi exploded forth. Qin Wentian turned, only to see the previously motionless leader releasing all three of his Astral Souls. All of his Astral Souls shone with resplendent light, and were actually condensed from Demonic Beast Constellations! The leader slowly moved forwards to Qin Wentian, as a towering demonic qi permeated the air.

Awoooooo~ Ferocious howls thundered out, as Qin Wentian’s eardrums shuddered from the impact. Immediately after, it was as if he saw a myriad of demonic beasts galloping towards him, seeking to devour him.

“Yuanfu level cultivator.” Qin Wentian’s heart shook slightly for a second. From the aura his opponent released, Qin Wentian could sense two things: first, that the leader was exceptionally powerful even among Yuanfu cultivators; second, he wanted Qin Wentian’s death with a single strike.

The leader also knew that his Yuanfu was sealed, which was why he chose to execute such a powerful innate technique requiring such a high consumption rate. He would rather kill Qin Wentian off with a single blow, rather than prolong the fight. After all, he noticed that Mo Qingcheng was also at the Yuanfu Realm.

Qin Wentian felt as though his eardrums were destroyed, and the galloping herd of demonic beasts gave him a tremendous sense of pressure. Qin Wentian’s blood was boiling, as the demonic qi gushing out from his body increased in strength. Taking a step forwards, he transformed into a blurry shadow, and pushed forth his Fallen Star technique. The resulting unstoppable force collided directly with the innate technique of his opponent.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. The terrifying might of his opponent’s blows were akin to typhoons blasting against his body. However, his current physique was already comparable to a demonic beast and had extremely high endurance. Moving as a blurry shadow, he continued pressing forwards with his ancient halberd without fear.

Rumble~ The terrifying counter-impact flung Qin Wentian’s body backwards, the force of the blow so strong it took two massive trees to break his momentum. Groaning, he spat out a mouthful of blood, the demonic qi so abundant that the entire atmosphere turned oppressive. The body of the Yuanfu leader no longer moved, as the ancient halberd had gored through his throat. He died with his eyes wide open, never expecting that under the pressure of his strongest innate technique, Qin Wentian who should be in imminent peril, would still able to fight back to such an extent.
Mo Qingcheng had also finished dealing with her opponents. Walking towards Qin Wentian, she retrieved a medicinal pill and placed it inside his mouth. Qin Wentian swallowed the pill as he regarded the nervous Mo Qingcheng, before smiling and reassuring her, “I’m alright.”

Although he smiled, Qin Wentian couldn’t allow himself to be the slightest bit complacent. The battle he had just faced, had opened his eyes to the dangers of these Refinement Grounds.

“Awesome.” Ouyang Kuangsheng stared intently at Qin Wentian, admiring the beauty of the final strike he unleashed. Ouyang Kuangsheng knew that if he were the one facing the Yuanfu leader, he could have avoided injury, but unlike Qin Wentian, his own Astral Energy consumption definitely would have been higher. The Refinement Grounds were akin to a life and death marathon; small injuries were fine as long as they didn’t deplete too much of the Astral Energy stored within their bodies.

Qin Wentian naturally understood this logic, which was why he didn’t mind suffering damage in exchange for his opponent’s death, not to mention that he already knew Mo Qingcheng had some recovery pills and medicinal pellets on her.

Nodding to Ouyang Kuangsheng, Qin Wentian didn’t continue the conversation.

“If we weren’t in here right now, I would definitely have sought you out for an exchange of pointers, haha.” Ouyang Kuangsheng laughed as he departed, planning to search for his party members.

In here, even if Ouyang Kuangsheng was extremely confident about his own prowess, there was no guarantee he’d survive by himself if he ran amok at the start of his journey in the Refinement Grounds of the Celestial Lake.

It was considered ‘safer’ to go alone nearer to the end of the journey, after the strength of the other allied forces were reduced. After all, only seven spots were available, and in this place where danger lurked in all corners, history had proven that many outstanding talents would fall.

Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng left the area, too. After all, the area was strewn with corpses, so only after changing locations did they sit down to regulate their conditions.

Qin Wentian passed a few Yuan Meteor Stones to Mo Qingcheng. In the Refinement Grounds, one could only replenish their own store of Astral Energy by depending on Yuan Meteor Stones.

However at this moment, sudden sounds of rustling rang out. Qin Wentian quickly turned his head towards the noise, his heart tightening.
“Oh Brother Qin, so it’s you.” Yi Xiang appeared, laughing as he approached. Qin Wentian discovered that Yi Xiang was with several others, looking as though he had already formed an alliance. The white-clad leader, with a handsome and delicate countenance, was none other than Mu Baifei, the swordsman from the Yan Continent.
“Isn’t Brother Qin together with those from the Greencloud Pavilion? Why are you injured?” Yi Xiang glanced at Mo Qingcheng as he inquired.

Although Yi Xiang was extremely cordial in nature, Qin Wentian still felt some misgivings towards him. He then nodded as he replied, “We ran into an ambush and were injured, as a result.”

“Without the Greencloud Pavilion, I’m afraid that it would be even more dangerous for Brother Qin and Miss Mo to travel alone. Tell you what, I’ll help to intercede on your behalf, so why not join our alliance?” Yi Xiang remarked.

Qin Wentian contemplated, glancing at Mo Qingcheng, but eventually agreed. Even if he had no care for himself, he wouldn’t selfishly allow Mo Qingcheng to be in danger because of his lack of power. Travelling alone, with everyone else forming alliances, would indeed be a foolhardy decision.

“Don’t worry, since we have an affinity, leave this to me,” Yi Xiang heroically spoke, as he ran towards Mu Baifei, conversing with him before waving his hands to signal for Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng to come over.
Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng went over, There were 18 people in this alliance, which could be considered quite huge in terms of numbers. However, it was clear to Qin Wentian that this was merely the start of the Refinement Grounds’ trials; for now, joining a powerful alliance equated to safety. But when the end of the journey is nigh, alliances would definitely collapse once people fought against each other.

There were a total of three, including Mu Baifei, who were all Swallow Swordsmen. They all carried ancient swords strapped to their backs and appeared extremely full of pride, even refusing to cast a glance at Qin Wentian. To them, these people who joined their alliance were of no value. This alliance was formed solely because of convenience; the others were also clear about this point and thus tolerated their attitudes. After all, the Swallow Swordsmen’s name and reputation was also exceedingly famous in the Nine Continents.

With such a powerful alliance, they didn’t really meet any dangers along the way, however occasionally they would come across the corpses of other cultivators sprawled around the Refinement Grounds.
After two days, they finally exited the Forest of Hallucination. Upon leaving, numerous pathways appeared in front of them, each separated by towering mountain peaks.

“Who will be the scouts?” a Swallow Swordsman standing at the side of Mu Baifei inquired. His tone of voice was cool and indifferent, sounding as though he was above the rest.
“Brother Qin, we would have to trouble you then.” Yi Xiang smiled at Qin Wentian.
Qin Wentian stared at Yi Xiang, his eyes narrowed for an instant before returning back to normal.
“Don’t worry, Brother Qin, these two shall accompany you, and we’ll immediately rush over if there’s an ambush.” Yi Xiang pointed to two others by his side as he spoke, causing them to frown as well.
“Fine.” Qin Wentian agreed.
“I’ll go with you.” Mo Qingcheng stepped forwards, standing beside Qin Wentian.
“Oh, we don’t need that many people to scout.” Yi Xiang laughed. Qin Wentian turned his head back, glancing coldly at him before holding onto Mo Qingcheng’s hands, walking forwards with no regards for those behind him.
Qin Wentian had no wish to stay in this alliance any longer. Upon seeing this, Yi Xiang’s eyes narrowed as a cold sinister light flickered within.
“Yi Xiang, what the hell are you thinking?” the female cultivator stated unhappily; she had travelled beside him on their way here. She had also seen Mo Qingcheng’s true countenance earlier. Considering Yi Xiang’s actions of asking Qin Wentian to scout ahead while retaining Mo Qingcheng, it would be very hard for people not to jump to conclusions.

……………………….

Within the Celestial Lake Palace, inside a quiet hall, an extremely bewitching-looking woman sat upon a jade throne. Traces of cold intent could be seen in her clear eyes, her demeanor appearing as majestic as a queen.
Her beautiful eyes were staring straight ahead, upon which numerous screens were arranged. Each screen showcased various scenarios currently playing out within the Refinement Grounds.
Two figures stood at the side of the captivating queen. One was the Palace Mistress of the Celestial Lake Palace, while the other was an extremely ice cold ephemeral beauty that didn’t seem to be from the mortal world. The aura she projected was somewhat similar to the captivating queen sitting on the jade throne.
At this moment, the cold gaze of the queen was staring at Qin Wentian. This youth, Qin Wentian, was said to come from Chu.
The Chu Country, back when the Azure Emperor had disappeared, the Azure Emperor Palace was faced with an imminent crisis. Countless gazes filled with greed locked onto the Azure Emperor Palace, and each and everyone of their members were under close scrutinisation. However, none of the overlords from the other transcendent powers found what they were seeking.
It was only recently that the constant surveillance had ceased after a piece of news had spread, claiming that prior to the Azure Emperor’s passing, he had gone to a place called Chu.

At this moment, the corners of the cold bewitching queen’s lips curled up into an unpleasant smile. Did those foolish fellows thought that they could find what the Azure Emperor had left behind? So what if they found the secret map? What use was there? There was still that woman standing guard, defending the final checkpoint!

“Will a new Emperor be born from the Azure Emperor Palace?” the queen murmured. Standing beside her, the Palace Mistress involuntarily shivered. However, the ephemeral beauty was unfazed, and without a single change in expression, as if her aloof and indifferent appearance would always remain as such!

Chapter 184: Monument of Yellow Springs

Choosing an ancient path at random, Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng proceeded on their way. To their surprise, the journey was smooth and they encountered no difficulties.

After embarking on the pathway for a while, they discovered that the many pathways ahead eventually congregated together, forming a broad main road. Further up ahead, they saw several cultivators already standing there, with their gazes turned forward.

“Ouyang Kuangsheng, no wonder the journey through this pathway was so smooth.” Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng halted their steps right where the various pathways congregated. Shifting their gazes ahead, they could see the corpses of several other cultivators strewn about, dying the ground a bloody red.

BOOM. Suddenly, Qin Wentian felt the blood within his body pulsing intensely, causing him to be alarmed. Inclining his head, he saw that further along was a stone monument with the words ‘Yellow Springs’ inscribed upon them. The monument floated in the air about 10 metres from the ground.

“How strange.” Mo Qingcheng, too, could feel the blood pulsing in her body, causing her heart to tremble.

This time around, the test was set within the ancient pathway of the Yellow Springs. As the Buddhist saying went: Coming face to face with the Yellow Springs, only with Buddhist’s enlightenment is one allowed to shed the abyss of worldly suffering. Only by turning back will you be able to see the shore (Repent and you shall be saved).

Rumour has it that if one came face to face with the Yellow Springs’ ancient pathway during the Celestial Lake Palace test, one must definitely turn back to seek out other paths. Many of the other cultivators had unsightly expressions upon their faces; since from the start all the various paths eventually congregated here, this meant that each and every cultivator entering the Refinement Grounds of the Celestial Lake Palace would end up here as well.

If one didn’t dare to proceed forwards, they could turn back (repent and see the shore), and other pathways will open for them. This was the meaning behind the Buddhist saying from earlier. However, if one dared to proceed through the Yellow Springs’ pathway, that would undoubtedly lead to a shortcut.

“I just don’t believe that the Yellow Springs pathway is as fearsome as the rumors described,” an unknown person stated hesitantly. After which, he stepped forwards, choosing to enter the pathway, yet doing so with extreme caution.

BOOM. The blood within his entire body pulsated, as he felt the intensity of the surging of his blood explosively increase.

Taking another step forward, his countenance turned ashen as his blood vessels could be seen popping out and protruding all over his body.

Releasing his Astral Souls, the Astral Light shrouded his body in a protective radiance. He gritted his teeth and continued slowly making his way forward.

BOOM. The pulsating of his blood caused his heartbeat to escalate. His entire countenance was covered in a bloody shade of red, as terror painted over his features. Booming sounds rang out as his heart pounded wildly.

“Retreat.” A notion of thought appeared in his mind, as he retreated with crazy speed. However, the pulsing of his blood became more alarming in intensity, eventually culminating in a bloodcurdling screech. The other cultivators only saw his blood vessels erupting, and like a fountain his blood sprayed out, falling like rain from the clouds. His heart was the last to explode and what was left of him, was only a bloody pulpy mess.

“Let us turn back,” Jiang Ting, who was beside Ouyang Kuangsheng, spoke out.

“Encountering the Yellow Springs is a rare opportunity, if we are able to get past this, we will definitely reach the celestial lake. I want to give it a try.” As he stepped forwards, Ouyang Kuangsheng’s heroism reached to the clouds. Jiang Ting’s countenance changed as she quickly said persuasively, “Kuangsheng, do not act on impulse.”

“Jiang Ting, if you all want to turn back, you guys go on ahead without me.” Ouyang Kuangsheng laughed out loud as he continued forwards. Similar to before, the intensity of his blood pulsing heightened, and his heartbeat escalated.

It was as though a gale of raging wind gusted over the ancient pathway. Ouyang Kuangsheng’s blood seethed, but his steps were filled with an unbreakable determination, projecting an aura of courage as he advanced.

So what of it, if he were to face the Yellow Springs? Since he had already decided to enter, he would never turn back. Even if he ended up dying, so be it.

Those from the Ouyang and Jiang Clan were all extremely nervous as they locked their gazes upon this youth so blessed with unsurpassed talent. The weakness of Ouyang Kuangsheng was that he was too impulsive, and all consequences be damned. As long as he set his mind upon something, his will would never waver, regardless of what others said or did. Even if this pathway of the Yellow Springs led to hell, he would still be determined to walk on it.

Coming face to face with the Yellow Springs, repent and you shall be saved, yet he stubbornly refused to turn back.

“If I meet my end here, go find someone better.” Ouyang Kuangsheng had already advanced his way beneath the Yellow Springs Monument. His resolute expression remained unchanged, his long hair danced about in the wind, seeming as though he had no other concerns in the world.
Jiang Ting’s heart pounded madly from his behavior. Ouyang Kuangsheng halted his steps and released his Astral Souls. Watching his movements, her heart leapt to her throat, only to see a few moments later Ouyang Kuangsheng continue to slowly advance, as though every step he took was a remarkably challenging feat.

Gradually, Ouyang Kuangsheng’s position got further and further from the Yellow Springs Monument. With visible effort, he turned his body as he smiled at Jiang Ting and the others, “Go.”

Jiang Ting and the rest, could only nod heavily in agreement.

“What should we do?” Mo Qingcheng looked towards Qin Wentian.

“I wish to give it a try as well.” Qin Wentian gazed at Mo Qingcheng, startling her with his answer. However, she recovered swiftly and with a laugh said, “Then I shall accompany you.”

“No, wait for me here. If I’m unable to persist, I will return.” Qin Wentian gently pinched Mo Qingcheng’s nose as he smiled. He didn’t want Mo Qingcheng to be too worried.

“Okay…” Mo Qingcheng nodded. Qin Wentian turned about and proceeded to head towards the Yellow Spring Monument. His heartbeat escalated as his blood seethed and surged. As for why Qin Wentian wanted to attempt this was due to the pressure emanating from the Yellow Springs pathway; he could feel the power of his own bloodline throbbing in resonance. Such a sensation made him thirst for more.

As his blood rushed through him with greater intensity, his heartbeat pounded frantically. He didn’t realize that behind him, Mo Qingcheng had actually took a few steps forwards.

Qin Wentian could faintly sense that he was unable to control the power of his Bloodline Limit for much longer. That outpouring of energy soared, as his hair turned inky black, whisked about by the wind. As the roaring sound of rushing blood became increasingly louder, he could feel the countless streams of energy within its flow.

Finally, he arrived at the point below the Yellow Springs Monument. Halting his steps, he closed his eyes as he turned his perception inwards within his body. It was as though there was a blood-colored seal jumping about in excitement. And from the aura emitted from the blood seal, he could sense the terrifying amounts of energy contained within.

“Is this the physical materialization of the Bloodline Limit?” Qin Wentian’s heart was trembling. To think that he had actually managed to sense the reason for the resonance of his bloodline. He had a faint feeling that from now on, he could freely control this source of energy, integrating it into his attacks.
Was this a breakthrough? An advancement in the leveling up of his bloodline.
Inclining his head, Qin Wentian’s vision turned blood red, as a tyrannical pressure gushed forth, so massive it felt as though it could reach the heavens. His was a Monarch-level bloodline, how would this mere monument be able to faze it?
Countless blood-colored imprints rose up into the air, flying towards the Yellow Springs Monuments. In that instant, the monument glowed with a resplendent crimson light, shaking as it flew towards Qin Wentian, as though the two forces were having a confrontation.
Mo Qingcheng turned pale white as she witnessed the scene, nervous to such a degree her heart felt strangled. She bit down on her lips until fresh blood flowed, taking yet another step forwards against the tremendous pressure.

At this moment, Qin Wentian still had no awareness of Mo Qingcheng’s actions. The imprints originating from his blood seal smashed towards the stone monument, and the monument’s speed gradually slowed as the once resplendent crimson light turned dull.
Mo Qingcheng felt the sense of pressure growing weaker and weaker, and upon raising her head, she saw the monument fall from the air to land in front of Qin Wentian, as pressure no longer emanated from it.
“What, my bloodline can actually control this monument?” Wonder appeared on Qin Wentian’s face. He felt that he had somehow formed a connection, binding him with the Yellow Springs Monument. Very quickly, Qin Wentian deposited the monument into his interspatial ring.
The alluring eyes of Mo Qingcheng flickered. “This…”
Ouyang Kuangsheng had turned to witness the confrontation, so stunned he remained rooted to the spot. Qin Wentian had actually subdued the Yellow Springs Monument?
Qin Wentian calmed the power of his Bloodline Limit, returning to Mo Qingcheng’s side. He saw the traces of blood and bite marks on her lips, and he felt incomparably touched knowing that she had stepped onto the Yellow Springs pathway out of worry for him.

“Silly girl.” Qin Wentian cupped Mo Qingcheng’s face with his hands. Mo Qingcheng beamed with a sweet smile as she replied, “Let’s be on our way.”

“Okay.” Qin Wentian nodded in agreement. However the very next moment, sounds of footsteps rang out as a few silhouettes appeared, coming out from one of the various pathways. Amazement was etched on the faces of the new arrivals upon seeing both Qin Wentian and Mo Qingcheng.

“You’re alright?” Qian Mengyu asked in astonishment, she had initially thought that with how things had turned out earlier, Qin Wentian would surely have been finished.

“My luck is pretty good.” Qin Wentian smiled. “We are on our way, do you want to go together?”

Glancing at the three others behind Qian Mengyu, Qin Wentian sighed silently. It seemed like they had suffered many casualties, to think that they were only left with four people.

“Fine.” Qian Mengyu agreed, as they both proceeded ahead. After several moments on the pathway, apprehension and vigilance could be seen in their eyes when they saw Ouyang Kuangsheng standing amidst a sea of corpses.

Upon noticing them, Ouyang Kuangsheng could only smile bitterly. Those that exited the Yellow Springs pathway would certainly be able to enter the celestial lake. However, the test earlier was ‘spoiled’ by a freak that had caused the entire Yellow Springs pathway to vanish. This meant that for later cultivators, there would be no test to obstruct their way. No one else would know that this test had ever existed.

Turning, Ouyang Kuangsheng no longer bothered with them as he sped forwards, hoping to be one of the first few to step into the celestial lake.

Qin Wentian and his party members also sped up, following closely behind Ouyang Kuangsheng, and all of them eventually exited this ancient pathway.

Those from the Greencloud Pavilion intentionally pulled Qian Mengyu back from following Qin Wentian and Ouyang Kuangsheng, widening the gap between them. Their actions caused Qian Mengyu to stiffen slightly, but she soon understood the meaning behind it. They were afraid that Ouyang Kuangsheng might launch a sneak attack.

After Ouyang Kuangsheng and Qin Wentian exited the ancient path, the first thing they saw were a pair of ancient trees, each standing at both sides of the road. Dazzling starlight could be seen flowing from the branches of the trees, originating from its fruits.

“Haha, light at the end of the tunnel, indeed.” Ouyang Kuangsheng instantly sprinted towards one of the trees as he leapt upwards and began rapidly plucking the fruits.

Qin Wentian locked eyes with Mo Qingcheng, as they sprinted towards the other tree to pluck its fruits. Their speed was amazingly quick so by the time Qian Mengyu and her company arrived, about half the fruits had already been plucked clean.
“Stellar Fruits.” Those from the Greencloud Pavilion were thunderstruck, as they, too,hurriedly sprinted towards the ancient trees.
“What are the use of these Stellar Fruits?” Qin Wentian looked towards Qian Mengyu as she asked.

“The Stellar Fruits are only useful in this spatial dimension; eating it will replenish one’s Astral Energy, and could be considered an extremely useful treasure inside the Refinement Grounds.” Ouyang Kuangsheng explained. He had already harvested all the fruits from the tree he’d run to.
Qin Wentian’s eyes brightened as he shifted his gaze to those from the Greencloud Pavilion. “There’re plenty of fruits here, let’s split them equally according to our number of people.”

“Why must we split them equally?” A female cultivator standing next to Qian Mengyu questioned, a sharp light glinting in her eyes.

Qin Wentian’s eyes turned frosty as he stared at the female cultivator, “What do you mean?”

“We allowed you to tag along and this could already be considered us taking care of you. Naturally, it will be up to us to decide how the fruits should be split. But don’t worry, you will surely get your share,” the female cultivator coldly stated, contempt apparent in her tone. This fellow was truly indulging in his own wild fantasies, he actually wanted to split the fruits equally?

From her point of view, the fact that they allowed Qin Wentian to follow them earlier was already a kindness bestowed to him by their Greencloud Pavilion. If it were not for them blocking the combined assault by the Beast King Hall and the Skydemon Sect back then, Qin Wentian would have already died.

“So, you mean that the fruits won’t be split equally?” QIn Wentian’s voice got colder by several degrees. He was the first to obtain the Stellar Fruits, and also the one who suggested the equal split. However, it appeared that those from the Greencloud Pavilion didn’t appreciate this kindness, and on the contrary, they still felt that he was too greedy.
Ouyang Kuangsheng was similarly dumbstruck, but soon after, an expression of interest appeared on his face. They took care of Qin Wentian? Forming an alliance was originally of mutual benefit to all parties and they would naturally face incoming danger together. But from the tone of her words, it was as though allowing Qin Wentian to join them was an act of charity on their part.
“Brother Qin, even if you want to split, you should be splitting the fruits with us.” At this moment, another row of silhouettes appeared by the ancient path’s exit. These new arrivals were none other than Mu Baifei and the others. The one who spoke was Yi Xiang, as his eyes narrowed, looking at Qin Wentian. Naturally, it went without saying how important the Stellar Fruits were within the Refinement Grounds.
Qin Wentian glanced at Yi Xiang, Mu Baifei and the rest of the members from his earlier alliance. There wasn’t a single kind soul amongst this group of people, indeed.

TN Note: 黄泉 → Yellow Springs (the underworld/hell of chinese mythology)