Book 11 Chapter 15

Fang Tian And Zong Jue

Regardless of how chaotic the situation was outside, the interior of that Qingyu Immortal Mansion remained peaceful.

Spiritual Energy spiraled around Qin Yu while he sat on a bed, meditating quietly.

Suddenly —

Qin Yu blinked open his eyes, and a brilliant halo of light spun twice around him within an instant.

“Five months later… my Nine of Nine Heavenly Tribulations will arrive five months later. I do not know how strong my Nine of Nine Heavenly Tribulations will be at that point of time,” Qin Yu’s eyes glimmered uncontrollably in excitement. The legendary Nine of Nine Heavenly Tribulations, which was said to be the hardest to surmount, will arrive five months later.

Qin Yu had significantly improved during that period of quiet practise.

Originally at the peak of the late phase Dujie stage, Qin Yu had practised to the Dacheng stage. Moreover, he had even received a premonition for the date of his Nine of Nine Heavenly Tribulations.

Qin Yu slowly walked out of the house, and stared at the boundless sky from the mansion.

‘The current Tenglong Continent should already be in a stormy situation, and it should more or less be time for me to leave this place. I wonder what the soldiers of the Chaotic Astral Sea are currently doing,’ Qin Yu considered those matters for a while, then turned and walked towards the direction of his brothers.

*****

Chaotic Astral Sea, Demonic Peng Island.

A banquet was held within Jinyu Hall. Even though there were more than fifty people, the guests who were invited to the banquet were at the very least in the Tenth Tribulation of their Loose Practitioner martial cultivation. The true strength of the Chaotic Astral Sea region could be seen simply by the number of people who were at least Tenth Tribulation Loose Practitioners.

If one were to talk about the number of experts, even if the number of Loose Devils were added to the number of Loose Immortals, their total sum would still be inferior to the Chaotic Astral Sea.

Zong Jue, the strongest martial expert of the Chaotic Astral Sea, was sitting on a throne within the hall. There was a faint smile on his face.

“Everyone. For the past few days, the Loose Devils have been fighting with the Loose Immortals on the Tenglong Continent. The cause of conflict was the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams. Since they were even willing to fight a large scale battle amongst themselves over the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams, I believe that those drawings must be very precious treasures. Therefore, I have decided to take part in it as well.”

Zong Jue did not want to let too many people know the truth regarding Ni Yang’s Realm. After all, that might cause the originally united Chaotic Astral Sea to go into chaos.

“Fu Yun Zi, Transform Into Stone, what do the both of you Island Masters think?” Zong Jue did not ask the others, but rather, he inquired the other two Island Masters of the Chaotic Astral Sea.

Fu Yun Zi was a Twelfth Tribulation Loose Immortal, and the leader of the three Island Masters of the Flowing Clouds Island.

Transform Into Stone was the elder brother of the two Black Wind Island brothers, and was an Eleventh Tribulation Divine Beast. The reason for Transform Into Stone’s name to be as such was due to his true form – a ‘Petrification Beast’. Therefore, although seemingly a common word, Transform Into Stone’s name could not be any simpler. However, Petrification Beasts were indeed fearsome, and this fact could be proven since both brothers were the Island Masters of one of the three large islands in the Chaotic Astral Sea.

“Since Brother Zong has said so, how can I possibly disagree?” Fu Yun Zi always had a slight smile on his face. “Moreover, our Chaotic Astral Sea region never really did reveal our true powers for a very long time. I estimate that all those factions on the Tenglong Continent are still thinking too highly of themselves. It is time that we show them the difference between our powers.”

People in the Chaotic Astral Sea had always thought of themselves as being far superior when compared to others.

Although there were some who were overconfident, that was also the truth.

The Chaotic Astral Sea was an entire sea of neutral zones filled with countless dangers and treasures, which had in turn gave birth to many strong martial experts.

“Brother Transform Into Stone, what about you?” Fu Yun Zi looked towards Transform Into Stone.

Transform Into Stone’s facial expression turned dark and he gave a honest chuckle, “I never really had any chance to show my true powers in the Chaotic Astral Sea. Since my hands are feeling itchy, let us go on a stroll to Tenglong continent.”

Zong Jue nodded.

Hu Yi, the second Island Master of Demonic Peng Island, gave a faint smile. “Us, the Chaotic Astral Sea region, can decide to totally nothing if we want to. However, if we want to act, we will definitely shock everyone with our powers. There are three pieces of Sundering The Heavens Diagrams, and one of them is with the Dragon Clan. The difficulty of retrieving that particular piece is quite high.”

More than five people nodded their heads within the large hall. The Patriarch of the Dragon Clan was a formidable expert who was on par with Zong Jue.

“The difficulty of retrieving the other two pieces are a lot less. One piece is in the hands of the Loose Devils, while the remaining piece is in the hands of the Loose Immortals,” said Hu Yi.

The Loose Devils within the hall began to speak. “The Tenglong Continent’s Loose Immortals on one side, while the Loose Devils on the other? Hahaha, why don’t we just directly rob both pieces off from their hands?” Suo Li, a Twelfth Tribulation Loose Devil leader whose power was ranked eighth within the Chaotic Astral Sea, burst out laughing while saying so.

“Suo Li, do you think those drawings are that easy to rob? Both the Tenglong Continental Loose Devils and Loose Immortals know how precious those pieces of Sundering The Heavens Diagrams are, which is why I think that they will not leave those precious treasures with their strongest martial experts. Otherwise, their locations will be easily exposed,” said a seductive woman as she smiled.

Hu Yi agreed. “What Little Sister Zhi Qiao said makes sense. Even if we are to kill a large number of Loose Devils, or even kill off Wu Kong Xue, I estimate that it will be very hard to find the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams. If we are to go against the Loose Immortals however, the likelihood of success will be a lot higher since I can easily guess that their piece of Sundering The Heavens Diagrams will be hidden within their Ten Developments Illusive Array.”

Ten Developments Illusive Array. Without any doubt, the side of the Loose Immortals would naturally have hidden their piece of the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams within the Ten Developments Illusive Array.

“What Second Younger Sister Hu Yi said is reasonable. If we are to have our first battle, we should confront the Shangtian Palace at Qingxu Mountain. However, they have the Ten Developments Illusive Array. To break through that magic array is very difficult,” remarked a Twelfth Tribulation Loose Demon named ‘Yi Zang’, who was also one of the top renowned figures within the Chaotic Astral Sea.

Zong Jue’s facial expression turned cold. “Oh? Do you think that even I cannot break that Ten Developments Illusive Array?” he asked in turn.

Yi Zang unconsciously felt a chill, and hurriedly replied with “Of course not, who would dare suspect Brother Zong Jue’s capabilities? I was muddled earlier on, but am now clearly conscious… This Ten Developments Illusive Array might be powerful in our eyes, but it definitely does not amount to much before Brother Zong Jue.”

Zong Jue nodded.

There were a total of five Twelfth Tribulation Loose Practitioners in the Chaotic Astral Sea – Hu Yi, Fu Yun Zi, Suo Li, Zhi Qiao and Yi Zang.

Of course, with the exception of Zong Jue, the strongest five might not necessarily be the same five people in terms of overall power. Take for example, the individual powers of Eleventh Tribulation Divine Beast ‘Transform Into Stone’. With the exception of Hu Yi who might barely win Transform Into Stone by a small margin, it would not be possible for the other four people to defeat him.

There were definitely many super martial experts under Zong Jue’s command.

“Hmm?” Whilst on his throne, Zong Jue momentarily wrinkled his eyebrows.

Suddenly, Zong Jue began to speak in a loud and clear voice, “Everyone, please enjoy the meal. I have to excuse myself for a while due to some important matters.” Having said that, Zong Jue immediately disappeared into thin air from everyone’s view.

Hu Yi, Lian Xiao, Fu Yun Zi and the other martial experts became puzzled. What could possibly have caused Zong Jue to leave with such haste?

*****

Great tides relentlessly smashed against a huge black reef, grinding the surface of that reef until it was smooth beyond comparison. At that very moment, two people stood atop that very same black reef which had a diameter of barely a hundred meters.

One of them wore a long, golden robe. His body exuded an elegant aura, while a faint smile could be seen on his face at all times.

In contrast, the other person was wearing a long, deep cyan robe trimmed with gold at the edges. There was a hint of pride on his face.

Both of them were invincible experts who stood at the very peak of the Mortal Realm.

Twelfth Tribulation Loose Practitioners were already powerful to a certain extreme, yet those two people were not only Twelfth Tribulation Loose Practitioners, they were also Divine Beasts. Moreover, in addition to being extremely rare Divine Beasts, they were Super Divine Beasts of extremely noble classes! Even in the Ascended Realms, the number of Super Divine Beasts were pitiably few. Thus, there was no need to even mention finding them in the Mortal Realm.

What could be the reason for that meeting between two peak martial experts?

“Fang Tian, how very rare of you to seek me out personally. May I know the reason?” Zong Jue inquired.

During the banquet, Zong Jue had received a transmitted message sent by the Patriarch of the Dragon Clan, Fang Tian. Therefore, Zong Jue had immediately left the banquet just to have a nice discussion with Fang Tian.

Fang Tian looked towards Zong Jue and gave a faint smile. “Zong Jue, can’t I say that I want to remember the good old times with and old friend like you?”

Zongjue smiled as well. “Of course you can, except that I am finding it a little hard to believe based on your character.”

“As expected, you really do understand me,” Fang Tian replied with a chuckle. “The reason for me to seek you out this time is due to an important matter. I received news that you have called up a large number of Late Stage Tribulation Loose Practitioner experts within the Chaotic Astral Sea, and many of those super martial experts are currently gathered at the Demonic Peng Island. Is that true?”

Zong Jue’s facial expression momentarily turned cold. “Yes. Don’t tell me that you want to hinder me from gathering an army?”

“No, no,” Fang Tian replied immediately. “Of course not. I only wish to ask if you already knew the secret behind the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams, thereby prompting you to gather so many martial experts.”

“What does it matter to you if I do, or do not, know of any secret?” Zong Jue looked at Fang Tian.

Fang Tian was momentarily startled, but he then immediately gave a hearty laughter. “Zong Jue, ah… Zong Jue. You are still as proud as in the past. From the aura that you were exuding earlier, I can tell that you have greatly improved in reading my mind. Ah, it now looks like your temper has not changed much, and you are still as proud.”

“How can I change that which is in my bones? That goes the same for you, Five-Clawed Gold Dragon. You are always exhibiting a noble appearance,” Zongjue responded with curled lips.

“I do not wish to talk about this. What I really want to know, is if you really do know the secret behind the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams?” Fang Tian asked seriously.

When he saw that Fang Tian had turned serious, Zong Jue laughed and nodded his head, “Yes, I do of course know the secret behind the Sundering The Heavens Diagrams. Isn’t it related to Ni Yang’s Realm?”

After hearing those three words ‘Ni Yang’s Realm’, Fang Tian gave a bitter smile. “I do not care if those Loose Devils or Loose Immortals on the Tenglong Continent know of this secret, because I have never considered them to be a threat at all. However, I have always wished that you will never find out this secret, because I know that once you discover a secret related to Ni Yang’s Realm, you will definitely participate in it given your character. The thought of having to cross hands with you gives me a headache.”

In the entire Mortal Realm, the only person who could be a threat to Fang Tian, was Zong Jue.

Fang Tian was very clear in his mind why Zong Jue was hard to handle. In terms of speed, there was no way Fang Tian could compete against Zong Jue. Moreover, Fang Tian was only slightly stronger than Zong Jue in terms of defense. Both of their offensive levels were roughly similar, but Zong Jue was simply too fast. If the both of them were to fight to the death, Fang Tian would feel extremely frustrated once Zong Jue began to abuse his superior speed during battle.

Zong Jue laughed. “Crossing hands with me might give you a headache, but as for me, I instead feel excited with the prospect of fighting you.”

Fang Tian let out a long sigh. “All right, let me tell you a secret since you have already decided to partake in the matter.”

“Oh?” There was a glint in Zong Jue’s eyes.

For Fang Tian to call it a secret, that could not have been any ordinary secret.

“The main characters for exploring Ni Yang’s Realm might not necessarily be us. It is possible that we will only be playing the role of assistants. This is because, no matter if it is the Demon Realm, Immortal Realm, or Devil Realm, they will all be sending their Emissaries down to the Mortal Realm,” stated Fang Tian in a relaxed manner.

“Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms will be descending?” Zong Jue frowned.

Fang Tian continued, “Yes, the secret which I am about to tell you is…… what will be the power levels of those Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms.”

What Fang Tian had said regarding the ‘descent of the Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms’ was not the actual secret. From his point of view, that could not even be considered as one. The power levels of those Emissaries – that, was the actual secret.

“You even know of this?” Zong Jue was shocked.

Fang Tian smiled. “Zong Jue, you never would have guessed. Even if the Dragon Clan is to send an Emissary, and even if his powers are stronger than mine, he still has to treat me with respect.”

“Why is that so?” Zong Jue asked in response.

Fang Tian stared at Zong Jue for quite some time. Only when Zong Jue was beginning to get goosebumps did he continue speaking. “I really do not understand why you are even a Super Divine Beast. Since you do not keep in contact with the Ascendant Realms, there are of course many things about the Ascendant Realms that you do not know. In the Demon Realm, the number of Super Divine Beasts are pitiably few. Every single Super Divine Beast is held with great respect. That is why…… even if the Dragon Clan in the Demon Realm is to send an Emissary with powers stronger than me, due to the very fact that I am a Five-Clawed Gold Dragon, he still has to respect me.”

Zong Jue suddenly had a very clear understanding.

The number of Super Divine Beasts were truthfully too few. For the Dragon Clan in the Demon Realm, the statuses of Super Divine Beasts were indisputably lofty.

“This is also the reason why I know the power levels of those Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms,” Fang Tian confidently stated.

Just from being a Super Divine Beast – the Five-Clawed Gold Dragon, he would hold a very high position in the Demon Realm’s Dragon Clan at the very moment after he achieved Ascension. The reason as to why the martial experts in the Demon Realm who kept in contact with Fang Tian usually answered his every question was also due to them understanding that very fact.

“So what will the powers of the Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms be?” Zong Jue continued to inquire.

Fang Tian continued to smile. “Before I continue, I must let you understand a fact. To enable an Emissary from the Ascendant Realms to descend to the Mortal Realm, the space barriers between both realms must first be pierced through, and a temporary space channel will have to be created. With regards to piercing the space barriers, that task will be extremely difficult even for Eighth Tier or Ninth Tier Mystic Immortals. However, the various martial experts from the Demon Realm, Immortal Realm and Devil Realm have thought of a method to pierce through the space barriers… except that the resulting space channel is considered to be relatively unstable.”

“A space channel that is relatively unstable?” Zong Jue frowned. “Do you mean that the resulting space channel will be unable to endure a martial expert with extremely strong martial powers?”

That would be akin to crossing a bridge. A small bridge could only endure a cart carrying that much load. If the load on the cart was too heavy, the bridge would be unable to endure and break!

Similarly, a relatively unstable space channel could only endure a martial expert with powers within its limit. If the martial expert was too strong, the space channel would collapse!

“According to the guesses made by the martial experts in the Ascendant Realms, the power levels of the Emissaries should be of Demon King (Devil King / Golden Immortal) calibre at either First Tier or Second Tier. Needless to say, the Immortal Equipment (There were no differences between Devil Equipment, Demon Equipment, and Immortal Equipment. It was only that the users were different) that those Emissaries possess, will of course be of the highest grade. Moreover, those descending Emissaries will definitely be elites.” Fang Tian seriously replied.

Zong Jue could also feel a sense of rising pressure.

Although those descending Emissaries were not going to be that much stronger than the both of them due to the constraints of the relatively unstable space channels, they were nonetheless chosen martial experts sent from the Ascendant Realms. Even if their powers could not be too powerful, they would undoubtedly still be armed with the highest grade Immortal Equipment, possessed the highest grade Spiritual Elixirs, equipped with a multitude of various treasures, and trained in the best methods of martial cultivation. They would definitely belong amongst the finest elites.

“Do not worry about it, those are matters that will come later. Moreover those Emissaries from the Ascendant Realms have yet to descend, so who knows how powerful they actually are? Oh right, let me ask you, who is going to be the first target of attack by the Chaotic Astral Sea army?” Fang Tian inquired.

“Our first target of attack?” Zong Jue smiled. “The Shangtian Palace at Qingxu Mountain!”

Fang Tian’s eyes lit up, and a smile also appeared on his face.