A weathered scholar, aged of face yet refined and elegant in bearing, gave an immediate impression of vast erudition.
Yet the instant his eyes narrowed, the entire world seemed to transform.
An inexplicable pressure bore down upon Luo Chen from every direction.
This pressure existed neither in the air nor upon the ground, yet it was omnipresent—from the breath passing through his nose and mouth to every pore opening upon his skin, it felt as though the entire cosmos was crushing down on him.
Was it an illusion?
No, it was an intuitive perception at the soul level!
Li Canghai—the sole human almighty cultivator in the Northern Sea today!
He asked softly, "How do you propose to prove it?"
How to prove that the Black King was his spiritual beast?
Luo Chen's expression turned cold. He first formed an incantation gesture before his chest, intoning three syllables: "Svāhā."
Instantly, his aura underwent a stark, dramatic shift.
A fiercely sharp momentum erupted from the depths of his soul like a drawn sword, piercing cleanly through that omnipresent, crushing pressure.
Li Canghai raised a brow, genuine surprise flitting through his eyes.
An Origin Soul!
He had not expected the man before him to have already transformed his Nascent Soul into an Origin Soul, uniting his magic power and divine soul so seamlessly that he could resist an almighty cultivator's divine sense suppression.
So young, yet possessing such cultivation?
The next instant, Luo Chen took a firm step forward.
"Since Senior demands proof, this junior shall provide it!"
A bizarre gleam surfaced in his eyes as his gaze fell upon the black dragon prostrating on the blue ice.
A faint, amused smile curved Li Canghai's lips.
To have coalesced an Origin Soul at such a young age, this young man undoubtedly possessed a unique mastery over the soul path. But if he believed he could break the dragon's restrictions merely through soul techniques, he was sorely mistaken.
It was common knowledge that Li Canghai had achieved the Transformation God realm through array mastery; when it came to restrictions and formations, scarcely anyone under heaven could rival him.
This Luo Chen had managed to breach the Mist-Veiled Spirit-Bewildering Grand Array thanks to his spirit eyes and impressive formation insight, but attempting to unravel the black dragon's restrictions with that alone was nothing short of overestimating himself!
Sure enough!
Under Luo Chen's gaze, although the black dragon displayed an expression of bewilderment and struggle, it did not awaken. It merely felt a faint sense of familiarity toward this man—much like when it had encountered Zhou Fuyou's Mirror Flower, Water Moon earlier, it was merely an ambiguous, specious impression.
"Little friend, it seems you have mistaken it for another!" Li Canghai chuckled.
Luo Chen remained unmoved, his eyes fixed intently on the Black King.
At the same time, a vivid crimson halo abruptly flared around his body, instantly billowing outward to envelop the Black King.
In that moment, the Black King's massive heart began to thud violently.
Thump!
Thump!
A power of the exact same origin as Luo Chen's rose naturally within it.
Resonating in tandem, the Black King let out a low, agonizing roar, its colossal frame writhing incessantly across the ice sheet.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Massive sheets of ice fractured, and the Black King plunged straight into the freezing waters of the Blue Ice Sea.
Seeing this, Li Canghai vaguely sensed what was happening, yet he did not intervene. Instead, he watched Luo Chen with mounting curiosity.
A low bark suddenly burst through the air:
"You fool, wake up at once!"
The next moment!
"Roar!"
From the frozen sea, a black dragon surged skyward, baring its fangs, brandishing its claws, and thrashing its head and tail, bathed in that crimson glow identical to Luo Chen's own.
That light was powerful and overflowing with vitality, as though immortal and indestructible.
It opened its jaws to roar, but catching sight of Li Canghai, it shrank back in terror and scurried behind Luo Chen in a flash.
"Master, that old... old grandpa is terrifyingly strong, terrifyingly strong!"
The corners of Luo Chen's mouth twitched, and his gaze met Li Canghai's astonished expression.
"Senior, does this suffice as proof?"
Li Canghai clicked his tongue in wonder. "You are quite willing to pay the price, nurturing a spirit pet with your very own essence blood!"
"Senior is wise to see through my humble trick at a glance."
Luo Chen felt no pride. Awakening the Black King was just as he had told Xiao Bai earlier—a trivial matter.
It had nothing to do with slave seals, nor was it tied to divine soul restrictions.
There was a fundamental reality that had always bound Luo Chen and the Black King.
Years ago, when the Black King's physical body had been utterly shattered, Luo Chen had used a secret method of the Heaven Refining Demon Lord to construct a blood pool, even offering essence blood from the tip of his own tongue to reconstitute the beast's flesh. That single drop of tongue essence blood, bearing Luo Chen's formidable power, had long since merged completely with the Black King, enduring perpetually.
In a sense, the Black King carried Luo Chen's bloodline and could be regarded as his blood descendant.
The simplest proof had been when the Black King broke through to the fourth rank; without any slave seal in place, Luo Chen had subdued it once more purely through their bloodline resonance.
What he had just done was use his source blood to stimulate the power residing deep within the Black King's bloodline that shared a common origin with his own.
Desolate beasts cared neither for qi cultivation nor for soul refining; flesh and blood were their very foundation! Memories rooted in the deepest recesses of one's bloodline could never be wholly suppressed by any slave seal or restriction.
This was the purest instinct of a desolate beast!
However, although the Black King's memories had been awakened, the divine soul restrictions imposed upon its spirit remained intact. Thus, even with its clarity restored, it still harbored an instinctive terror of Li Canghai.
Luo Chen addressed Li Canghai, "I ask that Senior show mercy and undo the restrictions upon the Black King."
Yet Li Canghai did not answer immediately. Instead, his shrewd gaze carefully scrutinized Luo Chen.
"Such youth, such cultivation, and even a physical body formidable beyond belief!"
"Very well!"
"If you can withstand a single strike from this old man, I shall lift the restrictions upon it."
The moment his words fell, before Luo Chen could even react, he thrust his hand forward with casual ease.
The fishing rod in his grip abruptly appeared right before Luo Chen's face.
The speed was so blinding that one had no time to respond.
Whether it was the Black King or Xiao Bai possessing Luo Chen, their thoughts were still lingering on Li Canghai's prior praise of their master.
Yet this thrust of the rod seemed to encompass the grand momentum of heaven and earth, the absolute truth of the world. Under this single thrust, the sheer residual force alone forcibly dislodged Xiao Bai from Luo Chen's body.
Across the boundless ice, the young man's expression shifted slightly, looking as though he would be impaled by the rod in the very next instant.
Within his left sleeve, a formidable power stirred eagerly, practically bursting to surge forth.
Yet Luo Chen suppressed that impulse.
Having long since coalesced an Origin Soul, his divine sense operated at incredible speed. With a single thought, Luo Chen extended his right hand with a motion that seemed slow yet was extraordinarily swift, pressing two fingers together like a blade as sword radiance flared.
Chii!
A wisp of pure Crimson Firmament Sword Qi met the fishing rod, only to shatter in an instant.
Yet Luo Chen remained calm. His sword fingers continued forward, the magic power within him surging like a tidal wave as the sword qi around his body coalesced into a single point.
Boom!
A terrifying burst of sword qi, woven from hundreds of strands, erupted violently, clashing head-on against that deceptively ordinary fishing rod.
Amid Li Canghai's renewed shock, Luo Chen uttered a low command: "Break!"
The next instant, the fishing rod crumbled into fine powder, dispersing back into the natural world as ambient worldly spiritual energy.
Yet Luo Chen's sword qi was far from exhausted; the unified force split into five hundred sharp rays, streaking toward Li Canghai's body like beams of light.
Unfortunately, once dispersed, their power was not what it had been. Before reaching Li Canghai, they were blocked by an invisible barrier and dissolved in a flash.
Watching the sword qi dissipate before him, Li Canghai praised, "The might of a single sword, comparable to a strike from a Transformation God cultivator. In this day and age, you truly deserve the title of number one beneath the heavens at the Nascent Soul realm!"
Luo Chen showed no arrogance, slowly lowering his sword fingers. "Senior's might is as vast as the abyssal ocean. I have merely made a fool of myself."
Both men exchanged praise, elevating each other in polite accord.
Then, silence descended.
Li Canghai studied Luo Chen closely, then casually flicked his sleeve, sending a hexagram star flying outward.
Facing this hexagram star, Luo Chen's eyes narrowed slightly, but he relaxed, allowing the mark to settle upon the Black King's brow.
A continuous hissing sound, like melting snow, rang out as the Black King rolled violently across the ice in apparent agony.
Li Canghai glanced at Luo Chen's left sleeve, then rose from the ice and pointed behind him.
"Little friend, the Blue Ice Sea is rather chilly. Would you care to join me atop the mountain for a chat?"
Luo Chen looked up. A towering mountain formed entirely of dark ice stood majestic and unyielding.
This mountain should not have been here.
A century ago, Li Canghai had stored it inside the Mountain and Sea Chart.
Yet it belonged here all the same, for Li Canghai himself was here.
"Master..."
A timid voice rose from behind, tinged with deep worry.
"No matter. Look after the Black King. I will return shortly."
With a flick of his robes, Luo Chen flew to Li Canghai's side.
Li Canghai seemed to greatly appreciate Luo Chen's courage. Smiling, he extended a hand. "Please!"
Luo Chen nodded slightly and walked shoulder to shoulder with the old man, taking to the air toward Bingpo Spirit Mountain.
Down below, Xiao Bai watched the Black King while casting worried glances toward the icy peak, her eyes full of dread.
***
Contrary to Xiao Bai's fears, the palace atop the mountain was as warm as spring, and the conversation between the elder and the young man was quite genial.
"Luo Chen, this old man has heard your name quite frequently in recent years!"
"I wonder if it was for good or ill?"
"Haha! For us cultivators, what difference is there between good, evil, or virtue? To have one's name spread across the five continents, what does it matter even if one is a wicked fiend committing every heinous atrocity under heaven?"
"By that measure, my reputation is indeed quite poor!"
"Little friend is too modest. Though you carry the title of Demon Lord Mo Luo, striking dread and awe into hearts, who under heaven would not wish to curry favor with an Alchemy Grandmaster?"
"Senior praises me too highly."
The genial atmosphere and polite banter had persisted ever since they entered.
Luo Chen understood that this equal treatment was something he had earned by withstanding that single strike earlier. Had it been before that exchange, let alone conversing with a smile, even sitting at the same table would have been pure fantasy.
Not wishing to waste time on superficial pleasantries, Luo Chen cut straight to the heart of the matter after a few brief exchanges.
"Senior, do you harbor a grudge against the Tianyuan Dao Sect?"
Li Canghai wore an amused smile. "Why do you say that? Surely you know I share good relations with Zhan Buxiu, one of the Five Elders of Tianyuan, and that we once fought side by side to deter the two ancient demons of the Northern Sea?"
"The past is the past, and the present is the present." Luo Chen shook his head, glanced outside the hall, and said, "The Black King aligned itself with the demon race to attack the Tiannan Continent. Could that truly have been on its own initiative?"
Li Canghai's smile faded, his gaze locking onto Luo Chen with unfathomable depth.
Subduing the Black King by chance had merely been a casual pawn in his hands; outsiders had no idea the Black King was his spirit beast, so sending it to harass the Tianyuan Dao Sect posed no risk of exposure.
What he had never anticipated was that Luo Chen, the Black King's true master, would track it all the way here and uncover the truth.
As such, his intentions toward the Tianyuan Dao Sect had effectively been laid bare. Even if only a sliver had leaked, to discerning eyes, that sliver revealed the whole picture.
"Rumor has it that you were once a Star Gate guest elder of the Tianyuan Dao Sect and even assisted the Five Elders against the demon phoenix sisters. In asking this now, are you pressing charges on the Dao Sect's behalf?"
The corner of Luo Chen's mouth curved slightly. "I was merely an external guest elder, and that was long ago. Has Senior not heard that I once joined the Mingyuan Sect as well?"
Li Canghai was taken aback.
He truly had not known about this.
After all, despite Luo Chen's past fame, he had only been a junior at the Nascent Soul realm. Li Canghai had only come to learn of him recently because his renown had grown so formidable that he was hailed as virtually the number one figure below the Transformation God realm.
Luo Chen's joining of the Mingyuan Sect and appointment as the Hall Master of the Alchemy Saint Hall had been buried in history the moment the Mingyuan Sect fell.
While he was still stunned, Luo Chen added another remark:
"Senior referred to me as Mo Luo earlier, so you must know that this title was forged upon the Buddhist lands of the Western Desert. You should likewise know that the demonic maiden Qingshuang and Formless Mo Luo joined forces to battle the eminent monks of the Hanging Temple. Therefore, my teaming up with the Five Elders against the demon phoenix sisters is also ancient history."
Li Canghai was left speechless. He had indeed overlooked that connection, and sneered, "Indeed, under the heavens there are no eternal enemies, nor are there eternal friends."
This was true of himself and the Tianyuan Dao Sect, and it seemed equally true of Luo Chen and the demon phoenix sisters.
Luo Chen nodded in agreement, then said solemnly, "In that case, I wonder if Luo has the honor of becoming Senior's friend?"
Li Canghai replied naturally, "The fact that you sit here means you are already this old man's friend."
Yet Luo Chen slowly shook his head. "No, I speak of a friend who joins hands to deal with the Tianyuan Dao Sect!"
Li Canghai's expression shifted drastically.
His originally scholarly bearing now turned unsettling, his burning gaze piercing like thorns.
"What is your aim?"
"And what is Senior's aim in attacking the Tianyuan Dao Sect?"
The two exchanged glances, neither speaking another word.
The hall fell into a profound silence.
After a long while, Li Canghai said in a low, somber voice, "If you truly wish to deal with the Tianyuan Dao Sect, you had best hurry."
Had an understanding been reached?
Luo Chen immediately asked, "Why?"
Like Luo Chen earlier, Li Canghai turned his gaze toward the outside of the palace, but his vision seemed to stretch across thousands of miles of wind and cloud, coming to rest upon those three continents of the Central Plains.
"The Tianyuan Dao Sect has deployed numerous grand formations across several continents, attempting to reassemble the Central Plains and even reconstruct Heaven and Earth Peak. Once they achieve such a grand feat, you should know what you will be facing!"
Luo Chen's face paled.
Pulling continents together and recombining the Central Plains was a heaven-defying act that seemed like divine creation to low-tier cultivators, but to Transformation God almighty figures, it was far from impossible.
And once the Central Plains were relatively whole and Heaven and Earth Peak was restored, it would mean the Tianyuan Dao Sect had passed its period of greatest vulnerability.
When Monarch Qixia attacked the Central Plains all those years ago, her greatest foes were not the Mountain Sea Realm's Tianyuan Dao Sect itself, but the avatars of numerous almighty beings descending into this world via Heaven and Earth Peak.
If the Tianyuan Dao Sect truly succeeded in this endeavor, Luo Chen would never be able to stand against them for the rest of his life.
He could not possibly achieve Monarch Qixia's level of strength within his lifetime.
Even Monarch Qixia had only managed to grievously injure the Tianyuan Dao Sect; she had been unable to annihilate it completely as had happened to the Mingyuan Sect.
Was it because that woman did not wish to?
No, even someone as terrifyingly strong as Qixia had been incapable of doing so back then!
Luo Chen swallowed hard. "Senior, are your words true?"
Li Canghai nodded heavily. "I achieved the Transformation God realm through array mastery; I understand the shifts in heaven and earth's grand momentum better than anyone. Not only have they laid preparations across the three current continents, but they have even established a Spirit Descent Array on Tiandi Island. If you do not believe me, you are welcome to verify it yourself!"
Luo Chen's throat felt dry. "How much time?"
"Sixty years at the least, a hundred years at the most." Li Canghai let out a sigh. "You must not underestimate the foundation of the Mountain Sea Realm's once-greatest sacred ground. Even without the Star Gate, one of their Three Treasures, they still possess the Lanke Chessboard—a peerless spirit treasure capable of suppressing the fortune and vitality of an entire continent!"
A jiazi—sixty years!
This span of time sounded so terribly familiar.
A slender, elegant figure flashed through Luo Chen's mind. Not long ago, that woman had personally named that very same timeframe.
Why had she claimed that only after sixty years could she retrieve his life soul for him?
Could it be... that it was tied to this very matter?
Involuntarily, Luo Chen clenched his fists.
Chapter 1051