Mature and Prudent

The Son of Heaven of Zhou's heart skipped a beat at those words. Looking toward the source of the commotion, he saw a great battle unfolding beyond the heavens. One of the combatants was his old acquaintance, Xu Ying; the opposing side consisted of four Immortal Realm powerhouses, every one possessing unfathomable cultivation! The four were besieging Xu Ying in a chaotic melee, the scene fraught with peril! The immortal who had perished moments ago was likely one of them. Seeing such a mighty being fall at Xu Ying's hands set the Son of Heaven of Zhou's heart pounding. *We haven't seen each other in just a few short years, and he's already become this formidable?* Liu Ruyi tilted her head to look and said, "Those are the Five Elders of Taiming Hall. Though these five immortal monarchs are unaffiliated immortals, their strength is extraordinary. Back then, they served as tutors to the crown prince before losing favor and being demoted." The Son of Heaven of Zhou looked up to watch the battle. The four elders' divine powers were exquisite and their footwork spectral. They even summoned their Dao trees, battering the firmament until it collapsed and crashing into the Heavenly Sea, churning up wave after wave of tsunamis. Yet Xu Ying was faster still. Facing the four's divine powers and even their Dao trees, he neither dodged nor parried. Charging straight through, he brought down three of the four elders in mere moments! Seeing that the tide had turned against him, the remaining immortal monarch immediately turned into a streak of light and fled, vanishing without a trace. The Son of Heaven of Zhou watched in dazed wonder, unable to calm his churning thoughts for a long time. They had both hailed from the Yuanshou world, yet after only a few years apart, Xu Ying had grown to such heights. How could he accept this? Noticing his reaction, Liu Ruyi smiled and said, "Senior Brother, there is no need to worry. The Dao Lord knows your cultivation is not yet high, so he ordered this false body of mine to bring a Heavenly Monarch-grade cave abyss called Yuanzhou. There is also the Dao Lord's art, the Nine Palaces All-Holy Mysterious Technique, as well as a bottle of Nine Palaces All-Holy Pellets. The Dao Lord personally gathered the immortal herbs to refine them, and they can bolster your cultivation." She brought out the Yuanzhou cave abyss and presented the Nine Palaces All-Holy Mysterious Technique along with the Nine Palaces All-Holy Pellets, smiling. "With the Yuanzhou cave abyss, the All-Holy Pellets, and the All-Holy Mysterious Technique in hand, you will surpass Xu Ying by far." The Son of Heaven of Zhou accepted the treasures. He felt that this day had been wonderfully joyful, yet he was also in a daze, as though living in a dream. *** Meanwhile, Saint Luo's disciple, Chen Chaosheng, arrived at Mount Emei in the Yuanshou world to meet Yan Kongcheng, the sect master of Mount Emei. "The founding ancestor of Mount Emei was once a disciple of Saint Luo, making him my senior brother." Yan Kongcheng hastily bowed to his ancestral master. Chen Chaosheng helped him up and smiled. "No need for such formality. I have come today for the Dragon Court. Now that the Dragon Court is about to emerge, this place is extraordinary—one must possess the corresponding karmic fortune to claim its treasures. I am not of the Yuanshou world, so I lack the destiny to seize them. That is why I sought you out." Yan Kongcheng asked, "Ancestral Master, is it dangerous? If it's dangerous, I'm not going." Chen Chaosheng chuckled. "Naturally, there is some danger." "Then I'm not going." Chen Chaosheng grew exasperated. "The treasures in the Dragon Court are beyond count! If you obtain even a single one, it would suffice for you to soar to great heights; overcoming the tribulation and ascending would be trivial!" Yan Kongcheng said, "What use is overcoming the tribulation and ascending? I could sneak into the Immortal Realm right now if I wanted. A while ago, I actually did smuggle myself over to visit the immortals who ascended from Mount Emei in the past. Our past masters aren't having an easy time in the Immortal Realm at all. They spend their days reading moods, keeping their heads down and eyes lowered. Proper immortals, yet their standing is worse than a dog's! I thought to myself that being an immortal is completely pointless. Living as the sect master of Mount Emei in the mortal realm is far happier than what they have." Chen Chaosheng was struck dumb, then laughed despite himself. "They have no standing, but you would! Accompany me this once to retrieve a few treasures, and I will introduce you to Saint Luo. If you become the Saint's disciple, would you still need to worry about status?" Hearing this, Yan Kongcheng felt tempted. "Ancestral Master, do you have any golden protective talismans or life-preserving treasures from the Saint? My cultivation and strength are weak, and having them wouldn't do you much good anyway—so give them all to me." Chen Chaosheng choked with irritation. Still, Saint Luo had indeed worried for his safety and given him life-preserving treasures. Chen Chaosheng brought out several magical treasures and handed them over. Only then did Yan Kongcheng feel reassured. "Ancestral Master, I will go with you, but you must walk ahead of me." Helpless, Chen Chaosheng had no choice but to let Yan Kongcheng keep him positioned in front as the two flew toward the Heavenly Sea. *Who on earth taught the current sect master of Mount Emei? He's far too cautious,* Chen Chaosheng thought to himself. Little did he know that Yuanshou was full of fishermen and people reaping chives. One of the ancestors who had once acted as Yan Kongcheng's Dao protector had been a fisherman himself—harming countless people, yet impossibly cautious. Over time, Yan Kongcheng had cultivated the exact same habit of extreme caution. Yan Kongcheng followed him to the Heavenly Sea, where glowing mist surged like tidal waves, growing increasingly magnificent. That was the Longxing Great World drawing near. "Although the Longxing Great World has merged with many worlds and is vastly larger than the Yuanshou world, the Dragon Court does not reside within Longxing. It is hidden in Yuanshou's waters of the Heavenly Sea," Chen Chaosheng whispered. "The Yuanshou world is of paramount importance. Back during the Demon Immortal Court era, the demon race attached immense importance to this place, stationing a Sun Guard upon the sun and dispatching the imperial clan to suppress this territory. Only the natives of Yuanshou possess the karmic fortune to claim the treasures of the Dragon Court; those from the Longxing Great World have none of it. Many experts of the Immortal Realm don't understand this underlying truth, so they went to the Longxing Great World looking for partners to enter the Dragon Court with. They won't be able to get a single treasure." Seeing Yan Kongcheng looking like a startled bird ready to flee at any moment, Chen Chaosheng's temper flared. He barked, "You belong to Saint Luo's lineage—how can you be so spineless? With me here, who would dare touch a hair on your head?" No sooner had the words left his mouth than a voice rang out from within the glowing clouds over the Heavenly Sea, filled with pleasant surprise: "It's Xu Ying! Don't let Xu Ying get away!" Immediately after, panicked shouts followed: "Old Fiend Xu is terrifying! Watch out, everyone!" Before the warning even finished, the surging glow erupted. Immortals tumbled out of the light one after another as Xu Ying burst forward, fierce and menacing, slaughtering his way through the crowd of Immortal Realm powerhouses across the sea's surface! Chen Chaosheng's expression instantly changed. He hastily pulled Yan Kongcheng in front of him as a shield, not daring to show his face to Xu Ying. Seeing this, Yan Kongcheng understood at once that Chen Chaosheng must have been beaten by Xu Ying before. He said, "Don't worry, Ancestral Master. With me here, Xu Ying won't dare touch a hair on your head." Embarrassed and infuriated, Chen Chaosheng snapped, "I'm not afraid of him! I just don't want unnecessary complications." As they spoke, Xu Ying had already scattered those immortals like birds and beasts. Suddenly, a prisoner cart whistled through the sky, radiating five-colored mysterious light. Its four doors swung wide open, casting down five-colored rays. Xu Ying's world spun, and he found himself trapped inside the cart. "Celestial Venerable Xu of the Dou Department, so much for your reputation—you still can't match my Prison Heavenly Jail!" A man laughed heartily and drew back the cart. Chen Chaosheng looked up to see a person in opulent attire with an extraordinary bearing. Above his head hung the Five Hells cave abyss, bottomless and holding who knew how many serious felons. Behind him stood forty-five jailers, every one an Immortal King. "So it's the Imperial Monarch of the Five Hells," Chen Chaosheng said, turning to Yan Kongcheng. "I'm afraid the Imperial Monarch of the Five Hells is about to suffer." Barely had he spoken when the prisoner cart abruptly exploded. Xu Ying shattered it to pieces and charged toward the Imperial Monarch of the Five Hells. Chains flickered elusively around the Imperial Monarch as he fought and retreated simultaneously. The numerous jailers of the Heavenly Jail unleashed their magical treasures in succession. Hooked chains crisscrossed the sky, alongside prisoner carts, cangues, axes, saws, chisels, whips, and rods—instruments for gouging eyes, severing ears, slicing noses, cutting tongues, flaying skin, and binding souls; all manner of torture devices, hooks, and ropes were present! Scores of magical treasures rained down on Xu Ying, striking him with reckless abandon. Numerous experts were gathered across the Heavenly Sea watching the battle, all wearing expressions of shock. "Lately, Old Dog Xu has thrown the myriad heavens and realms into turmoil. I heard that in the Tianyang world, Old Dog Xu snatched the Tianyang Divine Pearl from the Five Elders of Taiming Hall. To think of the poor Five Elders—losing countless disciples just to enter the Tianyang Forbidden Zone and pluck that divine pearl. Before they could even warm it in their hands, Old Dog Xu snatched it away!" "Old Dog Xu even beat three of the Five Elders to death!" "I heard primeval ruins appeared in the Jingliu world. Back then, the Three Saints of the Northern Sea, the Six Realized Ones of the Dao Sea, and the Thirteen Realized Ones of Mount Tiansheng all rushed there to seize the primeval scriptures. And who were the Three Saints, Six Realized Ones, and Twelve Realized Ones? They were getting along cordially, intending to study the primeval scriptures together—when Old Dog Xu charged out from nowhere and snatched it in one swoop!" "I heard about that too! Word is Old Dog Xu stood right in front of the Three Saints, Six Realized Ones, and Twelve Realized Ones, flipping through the primeval scriptures from cover to cover. The Three Saints, Six Realized Ones, and Thirteen Realized Ones surrounded him and attacked for three days and three nights without scratching a single hair on him! When he left, he even said 'thank you,' infuriating eight of the Twelve Realized Ones so much they coughed up blood!" "What a complete dog!" "A complete dog indeed!" ... Chen Chaosheng and Yan Kongcheng listened with astonishment. Chen Chaosheng muttered in bewilderment, "What on earth is Xu Ying doing? Still, to withstand the attacks of the Three Saints, Six Realized Ones, and Twelve Realized Ones for three days and three nights without flinching... it seems his cultivation has made substantial progress!" Suddenly, an earth-shattering tremor rippled outward—a violent shockwave through spacetime that shook so violently even immortals concealed within the fabric of space were tossed out. For a moment, dazzling lights illuminated the sky as Immortal Realm powerhouses revealed themselves one by one. It was the disturbance caused by the Longxing Great World merging with the Yuanshou world. The shuddering tremor not only dislodged the hidden immortals, but even cracked open the space of the Dragon Court, which had long been submerged deep within spacetime. In an instant, massive fissures split across the surface of the Heavenly Sea. Dragon qi surged into the sky from within them, coiling and soaring like divine dragons, exuding an earth-shattering aura! Many whose cultivation fell short were suppressed by the draconic Dao might, grunting as they tumbled down like rain into the Heavenly Sea. "Yan Kongcheng, wait for me here!" Chen Chaosheng rose and flew into the air, chasing after one of the streams of dragon qi. He unleashed a jade bottle that grew ever larger, drawing the dragon qi inside. Just as he moved to capture another stream, a large hand reached out and seized the next streak of dragon qi by the scruff of its neck. Chen Chaosheng's heart leaped. *Could it be a fierce character like Wei Xu?* He traced the hand with his eyes, only to see Xu Ying stretching his neck straight, mouth gaping open as he stuffed the dragon qi directly down his throat. Chen Chaosheng's eyes went wide. Xu Ying swallowed the dragon qi, his Adam's apple bobbing as he gulped it down whole. *Has Xu Ying been possessed by Wei Xu?* Terrified of being spotted by Xu Ying, Chen Chaosheng hurried back to Yan Kongcheng's side. Handing him the jade bottle, he said, "Refine the dragon qi in this bottle, and it will transform into a protective divine dragon. Ordinary Immortal Kings and immortal monarchs won't be able to harm you." Yan Kongcheng quickly voiced his thanks. Across the sea, thousands of experts eyed the newly appeared chasms like tigers stalking prey. Some could no longer restrain themselves and plunged through the rifts. The Dragon Court was the most mysterious of dragon immortal courts. Even the demon race had few records of it, able only to remain vigilant against the emergence of peerless powerhouses among dragons. Now that the Dragon Court was resurfacing in the mortal world, it was an earth-shaking event! Confident in his wisdom, Chen Chaosheng said, "The Dragon Court is a land of extreme peril, the burial ground of all the Dragon Court's masters. The malevolent qi within is exceedingly heavy. Anyone entering now is merely throwing their lives away—none will survive. We should wait a while before heading in." Yan Kongcheng asked, "Does Ancestral Master know something?" Chen Chaosheng shook his head. "I only heard it from my master, Saint Luo. He once visited the Ancestral God and saw the canopy of the Heavenly Dao Ancestral Court. There was a vast, dark region upon it—devoid of stars, devoid of worlds, utterly dim. "When he asked the Ancestral God, the Ancestral God said it was the ruins of a world even older than the demon race, known as the Mortal Realm. Look, now that the Dragon Court has emerged, hasn't the sky filled with unusual phenomena?" Yan Kongcheng looked up. The light emanating from the great fissures illuminated the sky and reached beyond the heavens. Deep in the cosmos, faint lights flickered in distant resonance with the fissures of the Dragon Court! "That place must be the former mortal world—the Mortal Realm ruled by the Dragon Court!" Chen Chaosheng said. "However, it has already been completely destroyed." Yan Kongcheng felt a tremor in his soul. The era of the Dragon Court, older than the Demon Immortal Court; the destroyed Mortal Realm—how much unknown history lay buried within? "Xu Ying has started fighting Imperial Monarch Xiao of Beiluoshimen!" someone suddenly shouted. "Old Fiend Xu was beaten until he spat blood by Imperial Monarch Xiao!" another cheered. "Imperial Monarch Xiao was defeated!" someone else yelled. ... Finally, the malevolent qi within the Dragon Court had vented considerably, and people began entering the great fissures in succession. Just as Chen Chaosheng prepared to move, Yan Kongcheng said, "Let's wait a bit longer." Chen Chaosheng had no choice but to wait. Suddenly, several bloodcurdling screams came from within the great fissure, followed by dead silence. Chen Chaosheng looked at Yan Kongcheng without a word. The crowd continued to wait. Soon, an immortal yelled, "Old Dog Xu is harassing Primordial Monarch Mingxia!" Another immortal shouted in fury, "Old Dog Xu is thrashing Primordial Monarch Mingxia!" "Old Dog Xu summoned the big bell to thrash Primordial Monarch Mingxia!" ... They waited for a long time. An Immortal Realm dignitary dispatched several expendable scouts into the Dragon Abyss. After a long while, the scouts returned and reported, "There is no longer any serious danger." Seeing this, the crowd began filing inside in single file. Chen Chaosheng said, "Let's go too!" Yan Kongcheng said, "Ancestral Master, let's wait a bit longer." Chen Chaosheng fumed, "How much longer must we wait? If we wait any more, we won't get a share of the Dragon Court's treasures!" Just as he said this, the scout dispatched by the Immortal Realm dignitary suddenly burst apart with a loud pop! His blood-soaked spine transformed into a blood dragon and soared into the sky! Agonized screams echoed out one after another from the various Dragon Abysses, then fell silent once more. "Xu Ying is throwing stones at the Immortal Master of Tianleicheng!" "Xu Ying was struck by the Immortal Master of Tianleicheng!" "The Immortal Master of Tianleicheng was defeated!" ... Chen Chaosheng and Yan Kongcheng waited for a long while more before someone finally entered the Dragon Abyss. After quite some time, the person emerged and shouted, "It's safe!" Others entered in succession, all reporting back: "It's safe." Yan Kongcheng said, "Ancestral Master, let us enter." Chen Chaosheng asked, "Not going to wait a bit longer?" Yan Kongcheng shook his head, taking the lead and flying toward the Dragon Abyss. Chen Chaosheng had no choice but to follow. As the two ventured deep into the Dragon Abyss, Yan Kongcheng suddenly let out shrill, agonized screams. Chen Chaosheng jumped in fright, but seeing Yan Kongcheng completely unharmed, he caught on at once and began screaming agonizingly as well. Hearing the terrible cries echoing from within, the crowd outside was horrified, and for a time none dared enter the Dragon Court. Full of boundless admiration for Yan Kongcheng, Chen Chaosheng thought, *Just what did this kid go through to become so mature and prudent? Yuanshou truly is a bizarre world.*