Lu Yuan had already obtained three of the Nine Cauldrons. The power of providence contained within them had already allowed him to invest multiple deities.
Of course, so-called deities were merely designations bestowed by the Investiture Decree. Neither the Golden-Winged Great Peng nor the Four Divisions were truly worthy of being called gods yet. The disparity remained vast, after all. On this point, Lu Yuan was quite clear: currently, the members of the Heavenly Court were still only Awakened and could not yet be hailed as true gods.
Even so, he understood that as his subordinates continued to grow and remained empowered by the blessing of providence, the day would come when the Heavenly Court would boast not mere forces, but a pantheon of true gods.
Each and every one of them would attain extraordinary might and wield combat prowess far surpassing others in the same realm.
For now, the utmost priority was the power of providence residing in the Nine Cauldrons. That was precisely why Lu Yuan sought them out.
Therefore, the moment word came from the Golden-Winged Great Peng, he ended his seclusion at once and set out for the destination.
According to the message he received, this particular cauldron lay within an obscure mountain range.
No powerful beings ever visited the place, and every corner of it was utterly ordinary. The range did not even possess a formal name.
In the old era, it had been nothing more than a cluster of small hills. Finding one of the Nine Cauldrons in such an inconspicuous spot had completely exceeded the Golden-Winged Great Peng's expectations.
Yet Lu Yuan was not surprised, for the reason was simple: the Nine Cauldrons anchored the providence of Huaxia, representing the mountains and rivers of the Nine Provinces.
As long as it was within the lands of the Nine Provinces, the appearance of a cauldron was entirely reasonable. In fact, Lu Yuan had even considered that even beyond the Nine Provinces—in territories that had belonged to foreign countries in the old era—it would not be strange if a cauldron surfaced.
Before long, Lu Yuan arrived at the place where the cauldron had been discovered. There, the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Spirit Monkey were waiting patiently.
Compared to before, the aura radiating from the two Beast Kings was exceptionally formidable. Both had reached the Saint Realm, and having been invested with their true names inscribed upon the Investiture Decree, their evolution and cultivation progressed faster than ever. As time went on, the bloodline power within them grew increasingly potent, leaving them with few rivals among peers of the same realm.
Buzz, buzz, buzz—
Soon, ripples shook the void. The two Beast Kings opened their eyes and looked in a single direction.
"Master has arrived." Seeing this, the Golden-Winged Great Peng's golden pupils flashed with excitement. By now, it had submitted entirely to Lu Yuan, revering him as its one and only master.
Deep down, the great peng knew full well that without its master, it could never have attained the Saint Realm in such a short span of time, nor unlocked its bloodline to this extent and wielded such terrifying power.
The Spirit Monkey felt the same. Having received countless benefits at Lu Yuan's hands, it now viewed itself completely as part of the Heavenly Court.
At last, a silhouette slowly emerged from the void. It was Lu Yuan, having rushed over immediately after concluding his seclusion.
"Master, one of the Nine Cauldrons is hidden within that mountain range. However, fearing complications might arise during the search, I did not act rashly," the Golden-Winged Great Peng stepped forward and reported respectfully, recalling a similar occurrence previously.
"Well done." A faint smile appeared on Lu Yuan's face. Counting the previous one, this was already the second cauldron the Golden-Winged Great Peng had located.
It was undoubtedly a great merit. Saying no more, Lu Yuan stepped forward and gazed at the nearby mountain range.
The mountains were neither imposing nor expansive, stretching over only a modest distance. Yet outward appearances could not always reveal the truth, just as no ordinary onlooker would ever suspect that one of the legendary Nine Cauldrons lay hidden beneath them.
"King Lu, how do you plan to extract the cauldron?" the Spirit Monkey asked as it approached. They knew a cauldron was inside, but its exact location within the mountains remained unknown.
And while the mountain range was small, that was only by relative standards. Finding a single cauldron would not be as straightforward as it seemed.
"That's easy," Lu Yuan replied with a slight smile, raising his hand with a subtle gesture.
The next instant, the Daluo sword core appeared in his grasp, streams of sword radiance cascading from its surface in an utterly chilling display.
He had not wielded the sword core for some time, simply because the Heavenly Court had gathered a vast array of divine materials, all of which Lu Yuan had melted and fused into the core to facilitate its metamorphosis.
Now, the might of the Daluo sword core was even greater than before. Even the Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Spirit Monkey could not help their expressions shifting slightly upon sensing its aura.
For they knew beyond doubt that this sword core possessed enough power to slay them outright. But why had he brought it out now?
Clang, clang, clang—
Just as the two Beast Kings were puzzling over it, Lu Yuan made his move. Raising the sword core in his hand, an endless torrent of sword intent surged forth.
A terrifying aura spread outwards. Clouds in the void began to shatter, and a chilling, somber intent filled the space between heaven and earth.
Abruptly, facing the distant mountain range, he swung down in a clean strike.
Hum—!
A streak of sword radiance flared to life.
It seemed to become the most dazzling spectacle in existence, freezing time itself. In a single fleeting moment, everything around it appeared to vanish into oblivion.
The Golden-Winged Great Peng and the Spirit Monkey felt their very souls tremble, their bodies instinctively urging them to flee.
There was simply no helping it; the aura was too dreadful, far exceeding their wildest expectations. Yet soon, as the sword radiance faded, the two Beast Kings barely managed to compose themselves.
However, when they looked up at the mountains before them, their scalps immediately tingled with numbness.
At that moment, Lu Yuan stood in the void, a solitary figure with his sword. In the distance, half of the mountain range had been cleaved horizontally in two—yes, horizontally.
A mountain range stretching well over a thousand li had been sliced cleanly across, leaving behind a surface so smooth and level that it formed an open plain.
"T-this..." Both Beast Kings were rendered speechless. For they could clearly sense that this strike was not even Lu Yuan's true power; he had not even gotten serious. What would happen if he unleashed his full strength?
Cleaving a star in a single strike would be child's play. Even though they were both in the Saint Realm, how could the disparity be so horrifyingly vast?
"Come, follow me to retrieve the fourth cauldron," Lu Yuan said while they were still in a daze, having already put away the Daluo sword core.
Unlike the two Beast Kings, he had an accurate estimate of his own strength, and he truly had not exerted himself.
He had done this merely to make the subsequent search a bit more convenient. Soon, they descended.
With the upper half of the mountain range sheared away, the aura of that Nine Cauldron had grown noticeably stronger.
Chapter 318