There's Always a Higher Mountain

The power of the Empire descended from the heavens. A magnificent radiance surged like a colossal pillar, swelling at terrifying speed. Amidst the incandescent light, an eye manifested with shocking clarity, opening wide to look down upon the world! In that single instant, no matter where one stood within Tacheng—or even whether one was inside Tacheng at all—the moment anyone laid eyes upon that celestial gaze, they felt that it was looking directly at them! *I gaze upon the green mountain, and the mountain gazes upon me.* Such a lofty, boundless realm— A Celestial-Human! Beyond a shadow of a doubt, this was an absolute Celestial-Human, and an Aether Celestial-Human at that. Ji Jue didn't care in the slightest about the Celestial-Human's downward gaze. Standing atop the roof, he looked out across the scene and clicked his tongue in wonder. To achieve such an absurd scale, in the end, it still took Tianyuan! The path of Tianyuan lay in taking in rivers from every direction and integrating everything into a unified whole. Its essence lay not only in being compatible with any domain, but in absolute control and governance. To put it simply, whether it was Vortex or Entropy, Transmutation or Desolate Ruins, Tianyuan could seize it and instantly refine it, folding it entirely into its own system. Except for the White Stag, it turned nothing away! Back in the day, the Eternal Dynasty had sought to use Tianyuan to subordinate every other Supreme Virtue, striving to achieve an eternal Heaven's Mandate and bring the entire world under its dominion. That alone showed how domineering it was. Even though it had ultimately collapsed midway and been repeatedly hacked down, after so many eras and shifts, Tianyuan's position as a hegemon remained unshakable. Except for the seventy chaotic years of the tumultuous era, it had never once dropped out of the top three. Now, backed by the full cooperation of Tianyuan, the insight of Aether wielded this genuine, unadulterated Imperial power, reaching far and wide as it cast its gaze downward. In an instant, every pryer and observer looking toward this direction was locked onto and marked. Those within Tacheng broke out in cold sweat, their hair standing on end. They felt as though that celestial gaze was penetrating straight through their physical bodies, boring deep inside to scrutinize their very souls. More terrifying still, it traced back through past events and phenomena, searching across causes and consequences without the slightest reservation. Right there on the spot, it began conducting a full investigation into everyone's name, address, and household register, refusing to spare so much as the family dog! Majestic ripples surged abruptly, one after another, rolling outward in waves! A torrential flood formed from countless events and records swept across the entirety of Tacheng, blanketing the wasteland for thousands of li. The crisp sounds of tearing silk and shattering jade echoed back and forth ceaselessly. Across the vast and bustling cityscape of Tacheng, the sounds of disguised appearances and illusions shattering rang out one after another. With effortless ease, a single shockwave erased every blessing construct and effect of the Mirror branch, crushing countless disguises and phantasms into dust. It violently ripped away everyone's fig leaves and subjected each person to scrutiny. Never before had there been such an outrageous, overbearing display. Countless people stood dumbfounded, while countless others broke into cold sweats and bolted to their feet, desperately trying to flee. Unfortunately, it was already too late. Beams of phantasmal light shot into the sky. Caught completely off guard, the auras of Celestial Chosen and the corrupted could no longer hide. Exposed beneath the daylight, they revealed their true forms. Every alias and disguise was stripped bare. It was as if someone had tossed a bomb into a muddy pond, blasting every single fish out of the water! "Holy crap—" In that split second of dead silence, Ji Jue felt a sharp sting in his eyes, nearly blinded by the overwhelming glare. In the dispelled darkness, both inside and outside Tacheng—across the urban sprawl and the massive expanse of the slums—auras belonging to Celestial Chosen flared one after another, dim and bright, strong and weak. It was as though he had accidentally wandered into some video game boasting absurdly high drop rates; bursts of multi-colored lights erupted all across the screen, happening so fast that one could hardly tell them apart. Wasn't this scale... a bit too terrifying?! Celestial Chosen, the corrupted, domestic, wild, state-owned, smuggled—from Beckoning to Exaltation, their numbers were beyond count, blazing with radiance simultaneously like a sky full of stars. First, right in the center of Tacheng, dazzling beams erupted from the Security Bureau's compound. Regeneration was merely the baseline; the radiance of six Exaltations pulsed continuously, shooting straight into the clouds like towering searchlights. Immediately after, not to be outdone, even more beams of light rose from the Secrecy Bureau's compound. Far from attempting any concealment, they revved up their matrixes, sending vibrations rolling in all four directions. The entire Imperial garrison base looked like a disco nightclub at that moment, spitting out cheap sound, light, and electrical effects in rapid succession, the vast majority burning with the crimson hue of the Swarm. Meanwhile, within the Federation garrison base, sheets of blood-red flames erupted like an erupting volcano. The power of Tianyuan engaged, causing a colossal eye of its own to manifest, casting a cold glare toward the Empire—*What, you think you're the only one who knows how to look?* Beyond that, deep within Tacheng's bustling urban districts, countless Celestial Chosen auras clustered together, flashing like neon signs across the office buildings of various corporations. Just outside Tacheng's city limits, the slums and the wilderness were instantly illuminated by beams of light. Countless auras rose and fell like glowsticks waving at a concert. Even if a sizable portion among them were mere small fry who didn't even possess a matrix, this sheer scale was still downright horrifying. Even more astonishing was that among all the figures revealed both inside and outside the city, more than a third were damn corrupted! "Now that really is an illustrious gathering of talent." Ji Jue couldn't resist clapping in admiration. *So this is the matchmaking pool in Mid-Continent? Gotta love it!* At this moment, it wasn't just Ji Jue—the vast majority of people, including the colossal eye in the sky, were stunned. Everyone knew Mid-Continent was a mess, but no one had imagined that the local pond was already chaotic to such a ridiculous degree behind the scenes! In an instant, people exchanged bewildered, incredulous glances. Those who had changed their identities and hidden in plain sight for countless years cursed out loud, swiftly packing their valuables. There was no way in hell they could stay in this godforsaken place any longer. More absurd still, at least four Celestial-Humans were caught completely off guard and exposed by the light! Inside an operating room at the Mid-Continent Infectious Disease Medical Center, an elderly doctor clad in a white coat paused. He raised his eyes impatiently, casting an irritated glance at the colossal eye in the sky before quickly returning to his work, thoroughly indifferent. In the basement of the Grand Creation Enterprise Alliance headquarters belonging to the Empire, a burly man soaking in a massive pool of molten lava yawned. Completely unfazed by his own nakedness, he raised a hand and flipped the eye a middle finger, gesturing for it to piss off back where it came from. A Transmutation aura flickered into existence for a split second the moment the colossal eye gazed down upon it, but it vanished almost instantly, disappearing without a trace. And then there was one more... Was there really one more? Amidst the collective daze, a shred of doubt surfaced in everyone's minds. *There was one just now, right? Did my eyes play tricks on me?* *Probably... Well, it doesn't seem important anyway.* Only Ji Jue, jolted awake by the sharp humming of Chun Jun, wiped a handful of cold sweat from his forehead. Heart Pivot! There was another Heart Pivot Celestial-Human crouching right in Tacheng's downtown?! Wait, how the hell was that reasonable?! Having a Heart Pivot sleeping right beside your bed was terrifying! What was even more terrifying was: was this truly all of them? After all, while Aether's insight was pervasive, it wasn't entirely impossible to guard against or counter. A fellow Celestial-Human of the Mirror branch could naturally wander outside its perception. Furthermore, numerous well-prepared and sufficiently powerful deep confinements—such as repulsion from the same Tianyuan branch, the subtle shifts of Transmutation, an artisan's workshop, or Celestial Artifice of similar function—all possessed adequate capability to maintain secrecy. This had merely peeled away the outermost layer— *Rumble!!!* Just as the radiance of the Eye of Aether climbed steadily, turning up the pressure like boiling a frog in warm water, a thunderous roar erupted. Within the slums, inside an unassuming, dilapidated factory building, a thin veil of phantasms shattered under the intense tremor. Immediately after, an uncanny flame shot into the sky, swelling abruptly and spreading outward in all directions. Like seven interlaced and tangled hands, it forcefully tore a rift through the confinement of Tianyuan. Right after, a streak of radiance swept up dozens of figures and sped outward at full throttle. In the next instant, it slammed violently into an invisible iron wall. Thunderbolts crashed from the heavens, forcibly tearing the radiance to shreds. Sheets of blood-red Swarm flames surged from the garrison base, butchering the fleeing figures like vegetables without an ounce of mercy. Amidst the bloodcurdling shrieks, everyone was left agape. "Whoa—" Ji Jue was astonished. "There really is an Evil Transmutation Cult here?" What was more, it really was the Seven Hands lineage he had randomly guessed before. One could only say that calamity had fallen straight from the heavens while they sat peacefully at home; they were cursed with rotten luck. If that dog Shehri hadn't been daring enough to steal a fusion bomb from the Imperial garrison base, who knew how long these bastards could have continued squatting in Tacheng's slums? Both sides had been caught completely off guard. Neither had seen it coming. Now exposed without warning, they fled in utter panic, but it was already too late. In less than two minutes, under the joint efforts of the Empire and the Federation, they were swiftly subdued! Furthermore, under absolute orders, the vast majority were captured alive. They weren't even permitted to die; even if they were to die, it would only be after the Empire finished interrogating them! Radiance swirled atop the colossal eye. Wherever it swept, striking beams of light rapidly surfaced like arrows and markers, refusing to overlook the faintest trace of suspicion or possibility. Anyone who had ever entered the Imperial garrison base, or anyone carrying a similar aura on their person, was coated in a high-intensity luminous outline. Immediately after, troops and Celestial Chosen waiting at major transportation hubs mobilized in all directions, apprehending every marked target in sight and packing them off to the grand hotel of the internment camp to enjoy complimentary meals. Even so, it still wasn't enough. The radiance within the colossal eye escalated further, continually piling on the pressure. Under its all-seeing, all-hearing scrutiny from above, it refused to overlook a single inch of soil, exposing even the earthworms burrowed in the ground. Setting aside the corrupted auras lingering in the slums, all the Celestial Chosen in the city became focal points of observation, while the zones that the Eye of Aether had failed to penetrate earlier attracted an even fiercer intensity of insight. At the same time, it finally turned toward Ji Jue. Ji Jue continued looking up at the eye in the firmament, spreading his hands openly and allowing it to pry as it pleased. After all, from beginning to end, he had never once set foot in the Imperial base. Even the faint aura he had picked up when drawing close earlier had been completely cleansed using the techniques he had acquired from the Tong family and his Aether-related smithing. He was squeaky clean. Furthermore, all corruptions were hidden within the soul shadow inside Chun Jun. Looking at Ji Jue alone, "clean" didn't even begin to describe him; he was practically Mid-Continent's sole innocent soul, Tacheng's pinnacle of blamelessness, and one of the rare beacons of conscience within the Artisans' Association in recent years! What did the Empire throwing a fit have to do with him? Look all you want. Feel free! Yet even after finishing its scrutiny of Ji Jue, that eye was unwilling to leave, its gaze settling squarely on his workshop. Ji Jue didn't make a move. He simply remained silent, looking up. Wasn't this demand... just a bit presumptuous? Soon, a phone rang. A call from the Federation garrison base. Fan Yun's voice came through: "Passarella has lost his mind. Don't butt heads with that old bastard. If he wants to look, let him look." After listening, Ji Jue went silent for a few seconds before helplessly shrugging. "Fine then." He reached out and, in full view of everyone, unsealed the outer spiritus barrier of his workshop. In an instant, a blazing, pure pillar of light shot up from the ground, soaring straight into the clouds. The spiritus structures of the workshop manifested beneath Aether's observation. Countless intricate formations overlapped one another like a colossal tower stretching straight toward the firmament, rising tier by tier amidst the surging flow of vast spiritus, completely unfolding and no longer concealing its presence. The sudden eruption of incandescent light blinded countless malicious eyes peering over in schadenfreude, leaving them in utter disbelief. No one knew when it had happened, but right under everyone's noses, Ji Jue had actually erected a workshop of such astonishing caliber! Yet that was merely the outermost layer. Before they could recover their senses, Ji Jue reached out once more, undoing the second layer—the spiritus restraints within the workshop. And so, the workshop framework inherited from the ancient Sage Quicksilver, augmented and revised through Three-Phase Alchemy, revealed itself before the eyes of all Tacheng. Unlike the dazzling glare from before, the essence of this workshop construct was restrained and condensed into solid form. It rose from the ground before everyone like a mountain range. Its mere liberation set off another massive wave across Tacheng, causing all spiritus to churn violently. Then, without waiting for the Empire to urge him— The moment Ji Jue snapped his fingers, all the stockpiles within were laid bare to the world. Amidst the swirling auras of countless Supreme Virtues, finished products, half-finished works, test pieces, prototypes, mass-produced items, and innumerable components blazed with light simultaneously. Three biting, sharp beams of brilliance shot into the sky. One was shrouded in blood-red flames, brutal and savage; one moved with airy grace, shifting unpredictably; and the third rose and fell like thunder, racing like fire—Pan Ying, Chun Jun, and Zhan Lu! Three blessed constructs that were merely a hair's breadth away from Celestial Artifice—or were outright Celestial Artifice themselves—were flaunted right in front of everyone. Deep within the workshop, a mechanical behemoth cloaked in black light opened its eyes. It cast a cold glance at everyone before finally looking up toward the prying, colossal eye in the heavens, brimming with eager anticipation. For a moment, even the colossal eye fell into a daze of disbelief. It had never expected an artisan like Ji Jue to be so thoroughly candid, nor could it have imagined that an Ember who, according to his files, had obtained his artisan license less than a year ago could possess such a terrifying collection! Rich! He was ridiculously rich! Even the Aether Celestial-Human felt like his eyes had been opened today. It didn't even cross their mind to suspect that this was a deliberate bluff to cover something up. What a joke—the workshop had already been thrown wide open for them to inspect thoroughly. Were you going to tell them that this workshop was fake too, and that he had another one hidden away?! Just how much had you had to drink to talk such nonsense?! Did they really think Celestial Artifice and workshops grew out of the dirt like weeds? Opening this mystery box left everyone feeling dizzy. Meanwhile, cracking and popping sounds rang out incessantly across Tacheng. The boxes kept opening. Under the joint orders of the Federation and the Empire, workshop barriers and confinements hidden beneath the Eye of Aether were forcibly breached one after another, exposing their interiors. Unfortunately, creations as absurd as Ji Jue's were exceedingly rare. So much so that as the latecomers faced the pitying gazes cast their way by Ji Jue at the forefront, they couldn't help feeling a crushing sense of inadequacy. Until a second radiant beam shot up from the ground once again. At the core of Huanyu Heavy Industries, another workshop revealed its true form like an iceberg rising from beneath the water, shining with magnificent brilliance. Overseeing the operation, Dugu Ming glanced at the stunned Ji Jue and couldn't help letting out a cold snort. An artisan? What was so special about that? We have a master on our side! *Come on, Master, show him what you've got!* Yet beside him, the elderly master running the workshop merely offered Ji Jue a faint, remarkably genial smile. It was as if he completely failed to understand Dugu Ming's intent—and even if he did, he pretended not to! Treating others with kindness was the very foundation of an artisan's survival, and avoiding conflict was a blessing for the Ember lineage! What else was he supposed to do? Go pick a fight with him? Was he insane?! That kid was from Chaosheng! Did Dugu Ming think life was too peaceful and wanted to experience what it felt like to be targeted by peers, or did he want to get sabotaged and marginalized within the Association? Soon, after the colossal eye had swept across every inch of the land, the vast city of Tacheng had been thoroughly turned upside down. Snakes, insects, rats, and ants were found in abundance, but other than the Evil Transmutation Cult, not a single heavyweight turned up. Unable to mask its disappointment, the colossal eye slowly closed. Heaven and earth were once again plunged into darkness. In the dead silence, huddled behind layers of protection in various corners, countless people quietly let out sighs of relief, drenched in cold sweat. Finally, they had endured it. Tacheng was no longer a place they could stay. Leave. Leave immediately. The moment daylight broke, they would depart without delay. Some couldn't even wait that long, carrying their airships on their shoulders to flee into the night. There was no helping it; this was simply too terrifying! What the hell were they playing at? Who could endure this kind of madness every few days? *Good thing my skills are superior. Hmph, a mere Empi—* *Rumble!!!* In that instant, a roar resembling the shattering of the heavens erupted from above the vault. The clouds stretching across ten thousand li were swept away in a flash. Just as everyone let out their breath, magnificent light surged forth once again, pouring down in a torrential flood. Its scale was ten times, a hundred times greater than before! *You thought I left?* *What a joke!* *The warm-up only just ended!* *Did I ever say I was being serious?* Who could have imagined that the Empire would be so utterly shameless as to double back with a vengeance?! Now, under the joint concealment and suppression of multiple Heart Pivots, the malice and killing intent that had been held in check finally erupted like a volcano! In an instant, countless colossal eyes opened one after another amidst the blazing light, overlapping in layers and stretching to the very edge of the horizon, blotting out the sky and covering the earth. Beams of gazes descended in crisscrossing patterns, measuring, weighing, and scrutinizing everything. Wherever their sight fell, every phenomenon churned violently, like invisible iron fists smashing down ceaselessly from the vault of heaven, whipping up towering waves that crushed all trivial obstacles and deeper confinements into dust. Heaven and earth blazed with light; all things were made manifest! Burning away every disguise, stripping away every falsehood, casting aside all glory and slander, everything beneath this realm, this light, and these eyes revealed its most fundamental, unvarnished nature. Unlike the minor skirmish from before, now, aided by several Imperial Tianyuan, the Aether Celestial-Human's Time Wedge—[Realm of Universal Illumination]—descended ruthlessly!! Amidst these unexpected, tempestuous waves, sharp and agonizing wails rang out. Within an unremarkable, desolate alleyway, a dying, hunchbacked beggar suddenly began to tremble uncontrollably. His human facade was burned away in the incandescent light, and tufts of jet-black fur sprouted at terrifying speed. A wolf! As every shadow and blind spot vanished entirely, the wolf hiding in the darkness was finally exposed beneath this scorching light, stripped of all ability to disguise its form. Immediately after came a second, a third, a fourth... Along with the exposure of the wolf corruption, a series of explosive bangs suddenly detonated out in the barren wilderness beyond Tacheng's city limits. Beneath the fractured crust of the earth, streaks of bone-white light and viscous, bloody filth intertwined, spreading outward like a mudslide. That pure, appalling savagery left even Ji Jue completely stunned, his jaw dropping. Great Sin · White Pavilion... A sin fiend of at least the Celestial-Human rank! Holy crap, there's another heavyweight?!