The entire world fell silent.
Within the dense forest, all the Grandmaster-level experts stared blankly at the second bright moon hanging high in the night sky, plunged into profound shock.
More than twenty li away in the commandery city, hundreds of thousands of commoners and martial artists also raised their heads in bewilderment, gazing in astonishment and uncertainty at the halo of light that dyed a vast swath of the night sky moon-white.
"What... what is that?"
"Is that a moon? How could another moon rise into the sky?"
"That's no moon—it's qi! It's the shockwave rippling out from a clash between supreme experts!"
"Heavens, what kind of experts could produce such a vast and magnificent spectacle?!"
"I once saw Rank One Great Grandmasters fight, and their might was never anywhere near this immense."
"Does that mean... Celestial Beings?!"
"Celestial Beings are actually clashing outside the commandery city? Could they also be after the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler?"
"They won't fight their way into the commandery city, will they?"
Rumble!
Ji Fan, who had been speeding through the air toward the dense forest to reinforce Huang Tian, abruptly halted his flight. He stared in terror at the colossal halo of light surging up from the woods ahead.
"What is going on? Could Celestial Being experts really be fighting?"
Tidal waves churned in his heart, and he grew hesitant. "If Celestial Beings are truly there, wouldn't Huang Tian be in grave danger? Should I go over?"
After hesitating for two or three breaths, he gritted his teeth. "No matter what, I must go take a look! If I can help, I will; if not, I'll retreat immediately!"
Just as he was about to shake the air and resume flying forward, a hearty, heroic laugh rang out through heaven and earth.
"Huang Tian, break through to Celestial Being quickly! I truly look forward to the day we face each other in real combat!"
The voice dispersed countless drifting clouds, resounding in everyone's ears and deep within their hearts.
Within the dense forest, the white-robed man had already collapsed unconscious onto the ground.
Huang Tian stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing toward the boundless horizon. It was as if he could see, thousands of li away atop an isolated peak piercing the sea of clouds, Yin Fenghai sitting cross-legged amidst the mist, cloaked in a dark robe. Swirling in two colors, his figure appeared indistinct, like an immortal transcending mortality.
As though sensing Huang Tian's gaze across the vast cloud sea and thousands of li, Yin Fenghai looked back, then gave a faint smile and nodded.
Whoosh—
A bleak night wind blew past, whipping Huang Tian's sleeves into a flurry. Only then did the people in the dense forest snap back to their senses. Yet at this moment, any fiery desire for the Void Realm divine armament had completely vanished from their hearts, replaced solely by deep shock and utter powerlessness.
Although they had not personally crossed blades with Huang Tian, witnessing that single strike of divine intent exchanged between him and Yin Fenghai was enough to know that his combat prowess had unmistakably stepped into the realm of Celestial Beings!
Facing a supreme Celestial Being, even if their numbers were doubled, they could never prevail!
Withdrawing his gaze, Huang Tian swept his eyes across the crowd and asked calmly, "Do any of you still wish to vie for the divine armament?"
The five Rank One Great Grandmasters looked at one another, repeatedly declaring that they dared not. Then, one of them bowed deeply and turned to leap away without hesitation. The other four Great Grandmasters followed suit, bowing and swiftly departing.
Since even these Rank One experts dared not contend any further, the remaining twenty to thirty people naturally dared not harbor any greedy designs. Each of them bowed respectfully and hurried away at once, as though terrified that Huang Tian might forcefully detain them.
Before long, only Huang Tian and Wei Shen remained in the dense forest.
"Come with me," Huang Tian said, taking to the air.
A bitter smile surfaced on Wei Shen's face. Clasping the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler to his chest, he flew into the sky and followed closely behind.
Whoosh—
"Commander Huang!"
Ji Fan flew straight toward them. Seeing that Huang Tian was completely unharmed, he let out a huge sigh of relief. Halting in midair, he cupped his fists and said, "Brother Huang, what happened over there just now? Were Celestial Beings truly fighting? Who was calling your name, and where is that armament master—"
Mid-sentence, he suddenly froze, his eyes staring straight at Wei Shen behind Huang Tian. "Y-You—"
Portraits of Wei Shen had already spread throughout Qin Province, so Ji Fan recognized him immediately. He simply could not comprehend why Wei Shen was obediently following Huang Tian, or what on earth had just transpired.
With a look of helplessness, Wei Shen lowered his head slightly.
Huang Tian said, "Earlier, I merely exchanged a move of divine intent with Yin Fenghai. It caused a bit of a commotion."
"What? Yin Fenghai? An exchange of divine intent?!!"
Ji Fan's jaw dropped in disbelief, his head buzzing loudly.
"Let's head back before discussing the details."
"All right... all right!"
Rumble!
Three white air currents surged toward the commandery city, and before long, landed directly within the Martial Restraint Guard government office.
At this moment, nearly everyone in the office was present—Zhou Tu, Yu Jingcheng, Bai Yuanfu, the Fourth Prince Shen Chuan...
The moment they saw Huang Tian return, everyone stepped forward with looks of concern. Having seen that massive silver lunar halo in the sky, they had guessed that legendary Celestial Being experts were clashing and were deeply worried about Huang Tian's safety on the scene. Fortunately, judging from his appearance, he seemed entirely unhurt.
"Wait! You're... Wei Shen?!" Zhou Tu cried out in astonishment.
Only then did the others shift their gazes to Wei Shen, who stood there sullenly with his head down, and they were all taken aback.
What in the world was going on?
First, there was a suspected clash of Celestial Beings, and now the armament master was obediently following Huang Tian into the office?
Everyone was utterly bewildered.
"Brother Huang, what... what exactly happened tonight?" Shen Chuan asked in confusion.
Huang Tian unhurriedly recounted the night's events from start to finish.
When they heard that Yin Fenghai was capable of possessing a body from afar with his divine intent, everyone was shaken to their core, for this signified that he was merely a single step away from the Void Realm!
And when they heard that Huang Tian had clashed head-on against Yin Fenghai with divine intent, the eyes of Zhou Tu and the others bulged as wide as bronze bells.
After a long while, Ji Fan ventured tentatively, "Brother Huang, did you break through to Rank Two?"
Huang Tian nodded. "I just broke through tonight."
"No wonder... no wonder... that explains it..."
*Explains it my foot!!*
Did reaching Rank Two mean one could trade blows with Yin Fenghai's divine intent?!
That was Yin Fenghai—the man who dominated the world and held sway over the five nations! The foremost expert under heaven! The person closest to the Void Realm!
Even if his divine intent was projected across thousands of li, the power it unleashed was undeniably at the level of a Celestial Being, and certainly no ordinary one at that!
In other words, Huang Tian, who had met it head-on without sustaining any injury, possessed genuine, bona fide Celestial Being combat prowess!
"Rank Two..." A disbelieving groan slipped from Shen Chuan's throat.
Fighting a Celestial Being at Rank Two!
Back then, Chief Commander Wan Shenyang had only been able to hold his own against a Celestial Being upon reaching Rank One perfection!
Huang Tian was not merely on par with the Chief Commander—he had surpassed him! In fact, his natural talent even eclipsed Yin Fenghai's...
Reeling from the shock, Shen Chuan looked at Huang Tian as though looking at a monster. How could such a person exist in this world?!
While the crowd remained speechless with awe, Huang Tian said, "After tonight, most martial artists will likely recognize the futility and leave Qin Province. However, until they have all departed, you must continue to maintain order within the commandery and remain vigilant."
"Understood!" Yu Jingcheng and the others answered in unison.
"Furthermore, I will be taking Wei Shen with me for a period of time."
No one raised any objection. Wei Shen was Huang Tian's spoils of battle to begin with, so he naturally had the right to dispose of him as he saw fit.
"Very well. You may all attend to your duties."
Huang Tian waved his hand and returned to Qinghui Garden. Without needing any prompting, Wei Shen dutifully trailed behind him into the manor.
Aunt Qin came forward to greet them. Pointing at Wei Shen, Huang Tian instructed, "Arrange a side room in the front courtyard for him to stay in."
Aunt Qin sized up Wei Shen with curiosity. She felt that the man looked vaguely familiar, but could not recall who he was for the moment. Shaking her head, she dismissed the thought and said to Wei Shen, "Please follow me."
Wei Shen glanced at Huang Tian, then flipped his hand conscientiously. A pitch-black heavy ruler appeared in his grip. Gritting his teeth, he tossed it over, and the heavy ruler landed steadily in Huang Tian's hand.
Afterward, he followed Aunt Qin away, looking back with every three steps, his eyes overflowing with reluctance.
Holding the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler, Huang Tian found it quite heavy. A cool sensation emanated from the weapon, but aside from that, there was nothing unusual about it; it looked no different from an ordinary heavy ruler.
Huang Tian was in no rush to study it. Instead, he carried the ruler back to his room, sat cross-legged on a prayer mat on the floor, and closed his eyes to rest his spirit, recovering the energy expended during the clash of divine intent with Yin Fenghai.
Roughly an hour later, he slowly opened his eyes. A clear light swirled within them, radiant and spirited.
*After that clash, my divine intent has become even more consolidated.*
Satisfied, he picked up the heavy ruler beside him and held it in his grip.
*They say Void Realm divine armaments possess spirits, but unless they encounter an armament master, not a single spark of their spiritual radiance will show.*
After examining it back and forth for a while without discovering anything, he pondered for a moment, then extended a wisp of divine intent from his body and gently made contact with the heavy ruler.
Boom!
Heaven and earth seemed to spin. The very next instant, he found himself standing above a boundless, fathomless ocean.
Looking as far as the eye could see, millions of li of azure waves stretched endlessly without a shore.
Countless churning waves stacked upon one another, surging tens or even hundreds of feet high, crashing one after another with thunderous roars.
*Is this the mental world formed by the divine intent of the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler?*
Huang Tian hovered high in the sky with his hands behind his back, surveying the scenery of this realm with great interest.
"Get out!"
"Get out!"
"Get out!"
Suddenly, an enraged voice echoed from all directions, accompanied by a powerful force of repulsion pressing down on Huang Tian, seeking to expel him from this world.
At the same time, with each furious roar, the ocean surged with even taller, more monstrous waves.
Walls of water reaching to the heavens rose up, towering like mountain ranges and stretching across thousands of miles.
They squeezed and crashed against one another, churning up endless clouds of spray. It was as though a rift had been torn in the sky, pouring down boundless seawater from the fracture. The sound was like rolling thunder, like the roaring trumpets of countless primordial giant elephants trumpeting toward the heavens!
"Why be in such a hurry to drive me away?"
Huang Tian smiled faintly. Raising a hand with a beckoning gesture, the illusory phantom of an ancient, profound elixir furnace materialized above his head.
Initially only about a foot tall, it expanded rapidly with the wind, instantly filling heaven and earth as if it had become the very center of this world.
Across the furnace's body, countless mystical cloud patterns and Dao talismans swirled ceaselessly, exuding a Dao rhythm capable of suppressing all quarters.
The furnace spun and enlarged. Its lid remained closed, yet from the countless apertures covering its surface, boundless flames violently erupted!
Whoosh—
The vast, boundless sky was transformed in an instant into an endless sea of fire.
The golden-red flames churned and flowed, at times leaping like golden serpents, at times soaring like vermilion birds.
Above lay an infinite sea of fire, burning the heavens and boiling the ocean.
Below lay a boundless realm of water, raging with towering waves.
Huang Tian stood at the very center of this confrontation between water and fire. The magnificent, colossal phantom of the furnace hovered above his head, letting down billions of fiery streams that shielded his entire body.
Rumble!!
Boundless seawater and the supremely masculine, yang-imbued flames that annihilated all things violently collided!
At the moment of impact, it was as if two falling meteors had crashed into each other.
A terrifying blast wave expanded outward like concentric circles, forcefully pressing a massive crater into the sea beneath Huang Tian's feet, while the waters further away were churned into even higher crests.
The seawater and flames eroded each other with savage fury.
Colossal waves crashed into the sea of fire, vaporizing into a sky filled with thick white mist.
Flames wrapped around the crests of the waves and poured downward, instantly drying out layers of surging water and evaporating vast swathes of the ocean to reveal the faintly visible, abyssal seabed. Yet in the blink of an eye, it was replenished by the surging waters rushing in from all around.
Seemingly feeling provoked, the ruler spirit of the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler grew even more infuriated.
The ocean became increasingly violent. Deeper waters began to churn furiously, slowly forming a colossal whirlpool whose edges were beyond the reach of sight. The center of the vortex was pitch-black and profound, exuding a terrifying might capable of swallowing all things!
Crash—
The vortex swept up towering waves, resembling tens of thousands of immense water dragons soaring into the sky simultaneously, pouring down toward Huang Tian.
Huang Tian's expression remained unchanged. The brilliance of the furnace above his head grew even more dazzling as it spewed endless golden flames, which surged like roaring fire dragons to meet the ascending waves in direct impact.
Another unending series of thunderous booms erupted—
Standing high in the sky, looking down upon the boundless sea, and feeling the essence of devouring and finality contained within it, ripples stirred in Huang Tian's mind.
*Perhaps my Water-element technique lies right here...*
He sat cross-legged in the void, closing his eyes, and his thoughts drifted into deep meditation.
Meanwhile, the furnace above his head continued to rain down countless streams of flame, enveloping him within...
***
For the many martial artists in Kunyun Commandery, this night was destined to be restless.
The armament master fleeing for his life, numerous Grandmaster-level experts giving chase, the suspected clash of Celestial Beings, and finally, the dust settling...
Almost everyone was inquiring about what had transpired during the night: Had Celestial Being experts truly fought to the death? What had become of the armament master in the end? And most important of all, into whose hands had the Juntian Ocean-Subduing Ruler fallen?
Rumors flew in all directions, and opinions varied widely.
It was not until a Rank Two Grandmaster who had witnessed the confrontation between Yin Fenghai and Huang Tian with his own eyes disclosed the truth to the outside world that all speculation came to a definitive end.
Yet, what followed was even greater bewilderment and shock.
"Yin Fenghai possessed someone with divine intent across thousands of li just to meet Huang Tian?"
"The disturbance earlier wasn't a death match between Celestial Beings, but the shockwave produced by the clash of their divine intents?"
"Comprehending divine intent at Rank Three, and able to fight Celestial Beings at Rank Two... am I still dreaming? No, I need to go back and sleep some more."
"The armament master was taken away by Huang Tian, so the divine armament is definitely in his hands. Sigh, we never stood a chance!"
"We never had a chance to begin with! Anyone below Rank Three who came to Kunyun was just here to watch the excitement anyway. Did you really dream that a divine armament would acknowledge you as its master?"
"Better to go home! We might as well just go home!"
Amidst the deep night, numerous carrier hawks and pigeons took flight into the sky, darting off in every direction to deliver the news of tonight's events to every province and across the five nations, spreading the word throughout the entire world!
Chapter 136