Stepping into Realm Lord

Within an unknown space, Qi Yuan lounged on a grand armchair with his legs crossed, looking exceptionally carefree. In the blink of an eye, the ninety-nine guishen revived once more. Unlike three years ago, these ninety-nine guishen were now completely numb. From loud, furious clamor in the beginning to dead silence now. Or rather, they had died... more than enough. Back during that battle, after dying repeatedly through continuous self-detonation, Qi Huang had finally noticed something bizarre. Qi Yuan had locked his HP! That was the only explanation! Yet Qi Huang hadn't been afraid. He had plenty of uncles, and quite a lot of guiling source. More money than sense. So he had kept detonating. Then... things had taken a turn for the worse, and they didn't dare detonate anymore. Yet who could have foreseen that the power Qi Yuan displayed far surpassed ordinary peak Mythological cultivators? Instakill! Instakill! Nonstop instakills. Even more terrifying, at some point without anyone realizing it, the human before them actually broke through to the Yang God realm. This was simply unimaginable, utterly incomprehensible. A withered mythological cultivator had suddenly broken through to the Yang God realm mid-battle. It was like an ordinary person on Blue Star eating a watermelon, taking a dump in the wilderness, sprouting a vine from the seeds, and that vine turning out to be the Sky-Ascending Vine! After Qi Yuan became a Yang God, the battle lost any shred of suspense. Qi Huang began to... threaten, beg for mercy, entice, and try to scare Qi Yuan with his Realm Lord uncles. Regrettably, it was useless. Qi Yuan couldn't even be bothered to pay attention, responding solely with... instakills. Instakilling them as a Yang God was vastly faster than doing so as a Mythological. Practically the instant the guiling source revived them, they were cut down. Qi Huang, who had once boasted so arrogantly, was now numb as well. Over these three years, dying immediately upon reviving, just how many times had they died? Probably hundreds of millions of times? Any human... no, even a god couldn't bear such torment. Now, if those numb guishen were still capable of thought, they would surely be thinking... *Lord Qi Huang, don't you have far too much guiling source?* At this point, true death was their only release. Reviving like this was pure torture. Qi Huang felt the exact same way; for the first time in his life, he felt agonizing pain over possessing so much guiling source. Their expressions were numb, and honestly, Qi Yuan was getting a little numb himself. "What's the difference between me right now and someone screwing bolts on a factory assembly line working 996? No, I'm not as tired as them, but my working hours are longer—year-round without a break. And most importantly... where's my salary?" Who stole his pay? Watching the ninety-nine guishen revive once more, Qi Yuan routinely blew out a breath. In an instant, the ninety-nine guishen fell once again. A tiny sliver of experience flowed in; Qi Yuan was already thoroughly used to it. "Even if it's mosquito legs, trillions of tons still add up." That was Qi Yuan's current mindset. Who would have thought that just by blowing breaths to slay guishen day in and day out, his combat power had now reached a level comparable to... his absolute peak in the Immortal Realm's Sixth Heaven. Perhaps even stronger. As for his game level and such, it had stabilized and manifested as cultivation realms. If Qi Yuan had a stat screen, it would display him at the third tier of the Yang God realm: the Rule Realm. However, his Rule Realm was different from other third-tier Yang Gods. After all, Realm Lords like those of the Zhou Universe had to merge with cosmic rules to become true Realm Lords. The Divine Wood Universe was different; its cosmic rules were scattered across the Mandate bearers. Unless one slaughtered every Mandate bearer and offered them in sacrifice to the cosmic true spirit, no one could merge with the cosmic rules and step into the Realm Lord level. "A bit strange." As Qi Yuan casually slaughtered the guishen, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes. Cultivation obtained through earning experience from slaying enemies was naturally more stable than cultivating step by step on one's own. When his experience was sufficient to cross from the peak of the second tier into the third tier of the Yang God realm, Qi Yuan's mind had inexplicably received a great deal of information. This was normal; upon stepping into the Yin God realm, a Yin God would also become aware of many paths ahead. Regarding the path of the third tier of the Yang God realm, one needed to merge with cosmic rules to achieve true ascension, transforming Ultimate Principles into cosmic rules where one's word became law. "Strange... I don't recall merging with any cosmic rules, so why... did my Ultimate Principles seem to condense into... rules? I guess you could call them rules." Qi Yuan was puzzled. Generally speaking, the Supreme Ultimate Principles Qi Yuan condensed—Do As One Pleases and Absolute Adaptation—unleashed their greatest power only in the Immortal Realm. Upon arriving in other universes or lineages, their might would be significantly diminished. Yet this time, not only had their power not diminished, but the two were even evolving. Typically, for an Ultimate Principle to evolve into a cosmic rule, one had to actively merge with a cosmic rule. Yet Qi Yuan... Without merging with any cosmic rule, he had somehow, bafflingly formed cosmic rules. This matter was extremely strange. "What's more, I haven't merged with the rules of the Divine Wood Universe, yet it doesn't reject me at all?" Normally, if Realm Lords rashly ventured into other universes, they would be targeted by the cosmic will. The oddities didn't stop at just one. "Wait, right—I'm a shareholder of the Divine Wood Universe. The cosmic rules... aren't they basically my money? Why would I need to merge with them?" Suddenly, Qi Yuan felt everything made total sense. In this company called the Divine Wood Universe, he was a shareholder. Why the hell would he need to merge? It belonged to him in the first place. Reject him? Keep dreaming. "Sigh... You guys revive way too slowly." In a flash, Qi Yuan slaughtered them who knew how many more times. By now, he could easily leave this space, but even mosquito meat was still meat. "Looks like I need to comprehend a time rule so they revive faster and die faster." Mulling it over, Qi Yuan casually waved a hand, shattering the pocket world. He and the ninety-nine guishen reappeared in the sky above Yunxue City. Now, he sat high in the vault of heaven, his form concealed, continually slaying these guishen. Because the speed of their revival and death was so extreme—surpassing what the human eye could track—not even cultivators could perceive the guishen reviving only to be slain in the next instant. Time flowed by, and three months passed. Qi Yuan took out his communication artifact and spoke to Xianling Yingjun: "Sigh, cultivating is so hard..." Far away in another world, Xianling Yingjun saw this, a smug look flashing in his eyes. "Cultivation truly is hard. Three years have passed, and I've only just stepped into the Great Venerable realm." He was showing off a bit. After all, Qi Yuan had always overshadowed him. "What kind of problem has Brother Qi Yuan run into this time?" Xianling Yingjun asked. Every time Qi Yuan reached out, it was to ask questions; he was used to it by now. A mature explanatory NPC would proactively ask what the player needed. "Yeah. I recently realized that killing people is too slow, so I planned to comprehend a time rule. But three months have gone by... and I don't have a single clue." Qi Yuan was also somewhat surprised. For some reason, when comprehending other rules, he could always grasp the basics very quickly. A time rule wasn't considered the most difficult among first-grade cosmic rules by standard logic, yet he couldn't even get his foot in the door. "Killing is too slow... Wait, a time rule? You're just a Yin God, why are you trying to comprehend a cosmic rule? Aren't you just looking for trouble?" Xianling Yingjun replied speechlessly. Even a genius like Fengti had only comprehended an embryonic rule. Directly comprehending a cosmic rule was something only Realm Lords were supposed to do. "Sigh, after three years of bitter cultivation, I finally broke through to the Realm Lord level. I thought I'd comprehend a time rule just to play around with it, but..." Qi Yuan was distressed enough to turn his hair white. "I thought I was a genius who could easily grasp a time rule in three months, yet... I made zero progress." In the other world, Xianling Yingjun's heart gave a violent lurch, and he doubted his own eyes. "Did something go wrong with the communication artifact I gave you? Why is it displaying that you said you became a Realm Lord?" Xianling Yingjun couldn't help asking. "It's not broken. I really did become a Realm Lord." "Bro... don't mess with me! You know I take everything you say seriously!" Even though Xianling Yingjun was a Yin God, his heart began racing frantically, thumping violently. What Qi Yuan said was simply too terrifying. Or rather, completely incomprehensible. Could it be that he had fallen into a time rift where an entire epoch had passed? "Why would I lie to you? I'm already a Realm Lord. Do you have any techniques for getting started with the time rule?" Qi Yuan asked. "Wait, no!" A flash of inspiration struck Xianling Yingjun. "You're not a Realm Lord!" "Huh?" Qi Yuan was stunned as well. He wasn't a Realm Lord? "Any Realm Lord doesn't need to comprehend the time rule. Once you step into the Realm Lord realm, you automatically comprehend it." Xianling Yingjun had found a flaw and breathed a sigh of relief. He had almost been duped. Even Qi Yuan had started lying! "Why is that? Rules don't need to be comprehended?" Qi Yuan asked, both curious and surprised. "When you reach the Yang God realm, you sever the past body, mold the present body, and welcome the future body... The past, present, and future all reside within oneself. Thus, upon stepping into the third tier of the Yang God realm, one automatically comprehends the time rule," Xianling Yingjun explained. This was no great secret; anyone whose ancestors had produced prominent figures likely knew it. Just like someone who had never seen an emperor still knew that imperial robes were usually yellow. "Uh... it seems I don't have a past body, nor do I have a future body," Qi Yuan said, feeling somewhat awkward. "It's completely normal that you don't, because you aren't a Yang God—you're still a Great Venerable!" The more Xianling Yingjun spoke, the happier and more excited he became. Thank goodness Qi Yuan was only a Great Venerable. If he really were a Realm Lord... Well, one didn't want one's bro to suffer, but seeing him drive a Land Rover was even worse. "You... have a point. In the game I'm a Realm Lord, but in reality, I'm just a tiny Purple Mansion cultivator, not even a Yin God." Qi Yuan sighed and fell silent. He felt a bit depressed. After cultivating so bitterly for so many years, he was still only in the Purple Mansion realm. If he had fans, they would surely say with teary eyes: "Our idol worked so hard, yet he's still only Purple Mansion! That's so unfair!" On the other side, looking at the greyed-out display, Xianling Yingjun suddenly slapped his thigh. "Aiya! I forgot to warn Brother Qi Yuan—Wu Dong is looking to cause trouble for him!" ... "Where on earth is he hiding?" In the Kuijin Realm, the blue-robed man had searched for months without finding a single trace of Qi Yuan. Because of the guishen and the fact that this was an occupied territory, he hadn't dared to be too conspicuous. However, over these past months, his patience had run completely dry. *I must make this quick. Once I kill him... I need to return immediately to the Yaoguang Universe!* Thinking this, Wu Dong hesitated no longer. A unique artifact appeared, and he soared into the air, his entire body radiating blazing golden light. It was like a scorching great sun rising. "I have heard that in this realm resides a man named Qi Yuan, who comprehended rules and reached the pinnacle of the Yin God realm, inspiring my deep admiration. Tonight, beneath a clear breeze and bright moon, I have crossed realms to claim your head!" Empowered by that artifact, Wu Dong hung high in the sky like an eternal blazing sun. Every living being in the Kuijin Realm could see him; every living being could hear his voice. He hovered in the heavens, blue robes awash with golden radiance. That brilliant gold inspired dread, akin to mortals beholding a god. Invincible, peerless! Wu Dong poured out his essence, energy, and spirit to his heart's content, displaying his immense power. Across the Kuijin Realm, countless beings looked up at Wu Dong, their eyes filled with dread. "This person is so powerful... Ordinary guishen probably wouldn't last a single exchange against him!" "Who is Qi Yuan? To think someone crossed realms just to challenge him!" Some were bewildered and perplexed, fearing they would be caught in the crossfire. On the other side, near Yunxue City, shock filled Wu Xiang's eyes. "He actually came to challenge... Mr. Qi. But Mr. Qi..." He was worried. The guishen had mobilized en masse, and Mr. Qi's whereabouts were unknown. Who knew whether he was safe right now? Just as that thought crossed his mind, he suddenly seemed to hear a familiar, lazy voice. "Day in and day out you interfere with my mortal transformation. Do you really take me for a pushover made of mud?" The voice was calm, like a breeze blowing across a silent, dead sea. Then the wind turned violently fierce. *Ptooey!* It sounded like someone casually spitting by the roadside. Wu Dong, who had resembled an eternal blazing sun, was instantly swallowed up. All light vanished in a flash. As if it had never existed at all. At that exact moment, Wu Dong's true spirit was extinguished. He hadn't even had time to react. Before he could even put up a fight... he died without a burial ground. Every living being in the Kuijin Realm stood dumbfounded, their expressions blank with bewilderment. The eternal blazing sun in the sky was gone. As if it had never appeared. Everyone was puzzled and amazed. Could it... have been an illusion? ... In the Yaoguang Universe. Realm Lord Sanmu opened his eyes, astonishment coloring his gaze. "Wu Dong is dead?" Pondering for a moment, he recalled that Wu Dong had gone to the Divine Wood Universe to challenge the native who had defeated Fengti. "Even the Creation Treasure shattered?" Realm Lord Sanmu was utterly stunned. He had once bestowed a Creation Treasure upon this disciple. Even though it was of the lowest grade, it was still a Creation Treasure. Unless a Realm Lord intervened, no one could shatter a Creation Treasure. And it was common knowledge that no Realm Lord existed in the Divine Wood Universe. "It seems I must trouble Realm Lord Suiyue to fish Wu Dong's true spirit from the Cosmic Mother River and find out what actually happened." Realm Lord Sanmu vaguely sensed that some unforeseen turn of events might have occurred in the Divine Wood Universe. Roughly ten thousand breaths later, Realm Lord Sanmu waited respectfully in a grand hall. The master of this hall was Realm Lord Suiyue, an existence of the Myriad Things Realm. Rumor had it that this Realm Lord had undergone mortal transformation for three epochs and had reached perfection in the Myriad Things Realm; one step further would be the legendary Heaven-Opening Realm. Realm Lord Sanmu had once assisted Realm Lord Suiyue's mortal transformation body, which was why there was some rapport between them. Otherwise, though both were Realm Lords, and the gap was merely a single minor realm, Realm Lord Sanmu normally lacked both the opportunity and the standing to converse with Realm Lord Suiyue. "Sanmu, Wu Dong's true spirit is not in the Cosmic Mother River." Just then, an aged voice drifted over, sounding like an ancient tree. Hearing this, Realm Lord Sanmu's face filled with shock. "His true spirit is not in the Cosmic Mother River? How is that possible?" "Perhaps... he was swallowed by Heitian," Realm Lord Suiyue said indifferently.