Of course, when Lu Yuan unleashed his aura, he enveloped the golden eagle within it so that it remained unharmed. Otherwise, once the Great Sun Smelting Furnace appeared, its searing might was not something an ordinary Beast King could endure. After all, the creature had carried him all this way; he could not be reckless with it.
However, the people of the Three Immortal Islands were not so fortunate.
The moment the Great Sun Smelting Furnace manifested, the ambient temperature spiked dramatically. Under the terrifying heat, even portions of the seawater below began to boil.
This was the power born from the complete fusion of two divine items—the Eleven-Tier Blood Pagoda and the Great Sun Flame God Furnace. It had surpassed anything an ordinary person could fathom.
At the same time, the golden vital blood coursing through Lu Yuan's body began to surge, sending out wave after wave of shocking tremors. In that single instant, everyone from the Three Immortal Islands felt an overwhelming sense of oppression.
Lu Yuan had no intention of remaining silent any longer. Raising his hand, arcs of electricity crackled and converged.
Rumble!
Dark clouds instantly gathered in the sky. Gathering the power of thunder, lightning descended from above.
"Not good!" The Sect Master of Penglai's face contorted in shock. Alongside the others, he hastily summoned his Golden Body Dharma Idol. Colossal figures materialized, towering between heaven and earth, each shimmering with distinct radiance. This was the ultimate technique of the Golden Body Realm, the supreme power they used to crush those of lower evolutionary tiers.
Yet against Lu Yuan, it was completely useless.
As the Jade Emperor Orthodox Heavenly Thunder Art was invoked, divine energy built up ceaselessly. Across the three sects, there were twelve experts in total—and twelve bolts of lightning torn straight from the heavens.
Each bolt spanned dozens of meters in diameter, descending with catastrophic momentum and radiating an aura of utter destruction.
Rumble!
In a split second, the world erupted into a deafening roar. The sea was blasted apart, throwing up towering tidal waves. Under such devastating might, the twelve Golden Body Dharma Idols stood no chance of evading—the lightning was simply too fast.
In an instant, the idols were blasted to pieces. Led by the Sect Master of Penglai, all twelve Golden Body Realm experts convulsed violently and were sent flying backward, blood spraying from their bodies.
"Isn't he only in the Shackle Realm? How can he be this terrifying?"
"A thunder art divine ability? He even knows a thunder art!"
"Quick, retreat!"
They were Golden Body Realm cultivators after all; a single strike had wounded them, but had not entirely stripped them of their combat strength. Yet given their nature, after witnessing Lu Yuan's frightening methods, they did not even contemplate fighting on. Like their ancestors before them, the descendants were no different.
Their very first instinct was to flee.
Lu Yuan had no intention of giving them that chance.
With a slight flick of his wrist, the Heaven-Shaking Bow appeared in his grasp. Drawing the bow and aiming were accomplished in a single fluid motion. He knew that under these circumstances, blood had to be drawn.
Whoosh!
The next instant, an arrow forged from the forces of heaven and earth streaked away like a beam of light. The expert fleeing in the lead was instantly pierced through, his body detonating midair. Without pausing, Lu Yuan drew, aimed, and released once more.
Splat!
A second Golden Body Realm expert was struck dead. With no means of resisting, he died instantly and plummeted into the sea.
At that moment, Lu Yuan spoke in a measured voice: "Take one more step forward, and every single one of you dies!"
The sect masters of Penglai, Fangzhang, and Yingzhou were thoroughly petrified, their bodies trembling. When that thunderous warning rang out, they froze in their tracks. They realized then and there that the man before them would truly show no mercy.
"I... I am willing to submit, so long as you spare my life," the Sect Master of Yingzhou finally stammered. He was terrified to the core. Never had he imagined that such a monstrous powerhouse could emerge from the mainland. Had the outside world not only just begun its resurgence?
Once the first spoke up, the sect masters of Penglai and Fangzhang and the surviving experts did not hold out either. Seeming to understand well that a wise man submits to circumstances, they promptly agreed to yield. As long as they could preserve their lives, nothing else mattered.
As for dignity, that had ceased to exist ever since their ancestors fled overseas to evade calamity and hid away whenever great wars erupted. In short, they were bullies who cowered before real strength; history had merely mythologized the Three Immortal Islands.
"Very well, then."
Lu Yuan stowed away the Heaven-Shaking Bow. Though he remained in the Shackle Realm, he was virtually invincible against anyone in the Golden Body Realm. If he were to fight with complete seriousness, deploying all his methods, he might even be able to clash with an entity that had evolved into the fifth stage—the Sovereign King Realm.
That was a full major realm higher. To anyone else, such a feat would be utterly unthinkable, yet Lu Yuan possessed absolute confidence.
Without overthinking, he looked at the submitted island sect masters. He modified the Blood Contract so that it could bind humans as well. Left without any restraint, who could say if a group like this might stab someone in the back later?
When the sect masters heard that a contract would be placed upon them, they hesitated, unwilling to be bound. But in the end, met with Lu Yuan's murderously cold gaze, they chose to follow their deepest survival instincts and agreed to sign the contract.
At least their lives would be spared, would they not?
Lu Yuan was quite satisfied with this outcome. He had already devised arrangements for the people of the three islands. A portion would directly assist the authorities, serving as enforcers while taking on roles such as instructors in various academies. The reasoning was simple: these cultivators possessed extensive experience in evolution and cultivation, possessed formidable strength, and held complete sets of breathing and visualization methods, making them ideal for nurturing the younger generation. The Blood Contract ensured they would not cause trouble. As long as their lives remained in his grasp, there would be no issues going forward.
Furthermore, Lu Yuan intended to hand control of the contract over to Elder Ji and Elder Yun, placing it in the hands of the higher authorities. He had no desire to manage such matters personally; it was best left to those designated for it. This was also an effective way to help the authorities build their strength and rapidly grow more powerful. After all, the arrival of extraterrestrial beings was drawing ever closer.
Having settled these matters, Lu Yuan proceeded toward the Three Immortal Islands under the guidance of the three sect masters.
They were exceedingly welcoming, offering detailed introductions and narrating much of their history. Among their accounts, the name of a famous historical figure even emerged: Xu Fu. Lu Yuan also learned that during the pre-Qin era, when the world's suppression was not yet so severe, the so-called Qi Refiners were indeed Awakened who wielded transcendent powers. The tales of the First Emperor of Qin seeking immortals across the sea were not baseless rumors, but historical fact.
Beyond that, however, little more could be gleaned; too much time had passed, and the Three Immortal Islands had been isolated for millennia. As a consequence, their resources had run completely dry. If things continued in this manner, they would soon be unable to sustain further evolution. Lu Yuan examined the terrain using the Fuxi Bagua Diagram and found it truly desolate, devoid of any divine artifacts. Spiritual fruits and rare herbs were pathetically scarce, which explained why they had been so desperate to make landfall on the mainland.
After touring for a while and confirming there was nothing of genuine interest, he chose to depart. He instructed the three sect masters to make their preparations and then proceed to the mainland to establish contact, where arrangements would await them.
Meanwhile, on the shores of the Bohai Sea, the battlefield had been cleared, and the wounded had received medical treatment. Yet Elder Ji, Elder Yun, the Ice Fairy, and the others had not left, their eyes remaining fixed on the distant islands. They believed in Lu Yuan's strength, but lingering concern held them there, waiting for his return.
Finally, roughly half an hour later, Lu Yuan appeared aboard his golden eagle, returning as calm and steady as he had departed.
A collective sigh of relief washed over everyone. They knew the situation was secured, though they wondered what had become of the Three Immortal Islands.
Lu Yuan got straight to the point, explaining that representatives from the Three Immortal Islands would soon arrive to formally join the authorities, bolstering their ranks and helping train students across the Zhendan academies to build up the nation's strength for the future.
Elder Ji and the others were completely stunned, unable to wrap their minds around it. After the battle had turned so bloody, the other side had actually chosen to submit?
To this, Lu Yuan offered only a single explanation: "I simply reasoned with them."
After discussing the matters regarding the islands with the two elders, he set off once more. This time, his destination was Mount Tai.
With business temporarily concluded, the remaining follow-up did not require his involvement. All that was left was to wait—wait for the world to undergo its second complete resurgence.
When that time came, immense opportunities would arise. Naturally, extraterrestrial beings would arrive alongside them. Even though he was strong, he had to make thorough preparations before then.
A few days later, the sect masters of the Three Immortal Islands came ashore. They had no other choice; none of them dared to defy Lu Yuan. According to the instructions given to them, they would cooperate fully with the authorities and contribute their heritages, effectively channeling their foundational knowledge into nourishing the mainland.
Elder Ji, Elder Yun, and the others naturally raised no objections. The Three Immortal Islands had been the aggressors in the first place, and now they were merely paying the price of defeat; there was nothing more to be said. Both elders were seasoned veterans who grasped Lu Yuan's intentions. Filled with gratitude, they executed the plan resolutely, acutely aware of the dramatic shifts awaiting the world in the days ahead.
With that, the incident of the Three Immortal Islands came to a definitive close.
The authorities published the news online under the headline:
[King Lu Emerges Alone from Mount Tai, Crushes the Legendary Three Immortal Islands into Total Submission]
The public, which had been following the situation with bated breath, erupted into excitement. Many had feared the islands were too powerful for even the authorities to handle, yet in the end, King Lu had stepped in alone and settled the crisis, forcing the immortals of the islands to bow their heads.
"That's King Lu for you! There's nothing he can't do!"
"Without a doubt! When King Lu acts, every evil spirit meets its end!"
"Who in this world could possibly match him? Peerless beneath the heavens—truly peerless!"
Excited netizens flooded the forums with praise. The image of Lu Yuan's invincibility grew even more deep-seated in everyone's hearts. Some openly hailed him as peerless beneath the heavens, the strongest existence in the modern world, standing at the very forefront of evolution—the undisputed number one in combat power!
In Shanghai, within a secluded villa.
Zhou Yunqiong was dressed casually in a simple shirt and jeans, leaning lazily against the sofa. Mysterious wisps of energy coiled around her, giving her an increasingly transcendent aura. Even her hair held a faint, serene shimmer, bestowing upon her the presence of a goddess whom none dared approach.
Soon, however, her delicate brows knitted together, a flicker of astonishment rising in her eyes.
She had just caught sight of the official announcement detailing how Lu Yuan had single-handedly subdued the Three Immortal Islands.
When she read the comments calling him peerless beneath the heavens and the foremost in combat power, Zhou Yunqiong sat up straight. A glint of brilliance flashed across her eyes as she murmured to herself, "Lu Yuan, your accomplishments have truly exceeded my expectations. It seems... I must take action as well."
Chapter 119