Harvest

"The effect is actually this remarkable." Even Yaoguang felt a touch of surprise. Void Refining! Refining all creation! The demonic bodies of demonic cultivators, the true bodies of the demon race, the divine bodies of the God Race, and even the grotto-heavens of human cultivators—all could become the sustenance that Void Refining cultivators used to empower themselves. However... Except when elders willingly imparted power to their juniors, practically no cultivator was willing to be refined by a Void Refining expert. When they realized their defeat was irreversible, cultivators almost universally chose to self-detonate, determined to rip off a pound of flesh from their enemy even in death. Demonic cultivators were no different... They would also use their own power to corrupt a cultivator's grotto-heaven. In the end, even if a cultivator managed to refine a demonic cultivator, repairing the corrupted grotto-heaven would require an immense amount of energy and effort. Done carelessly, the losses would far outweigh the gains. Yet after Yaoguang's grotto-heaven fused with the Heart of the Void, it had begun transforming into a miniature world of its own, possessing exceptionally high resistance against the corrosion of demonic flames. Under such circumstances, even though Xie Tong had unleashed a desperate death throe, he had failed to exert any significant toll on Yaoguang's grotto-heaven. "Beyond the breakthrough in cultivation, this Dao artifact is another pleasant surprise." Yaoguang reached out with an ethereal hand. The Thunder War Halberd fell into his grasp. Cultivators of the Grand Dao of Thunder were few in number, falling far short of those walking the Grand Dao of the Void, but a Dao artifact was still a Dao artifact. It could always fetch an exorbitant price. Aside from his cultivation and the Dao artifact... Yaoguang took a moment to sense the abundant experience accumulated within [Demon Hunting]. "Demons and fiends... the demon race and demonic cultivators truly share common roots after all." The demon race cultivated the Heavenly Demon True Body. Demonic cultivators, on the other hand, cultivated the Heavenly Demon Origin. No matter what living creature stepped onto the path of demonic cultivation, they would gradually transform into something akin to vapor and raw energy. Formless and intangible. Such beings clearly fell into the category of foreign races. Naturally, [Demon Hunting] took effect as well. "One Void Piercing demon and one Void Refining demon..." With a single thought, he poured all the accumulated experience into [Immortal Dao: Void Shattering]. Instantly, the branch that had remained dormant for some time began to grow once more, not halting until it reached thirty-six percent. As the progress surged, a flood of insights regarding the Void Shattering realm, along with the most critical Dao arts of this stage, surged into his mind. Among the countless Dao arts flashing through his consciousness, one in particular caused his heart to leap. Soon, the complete insights and mastery of this Dao art flooded his thoughts. "It's finally here: Great Dao of Origin—Sovereign Human Emperor." A glimmer of delight flashed through Yaoguang's eyes. With his major mastery of both the Void Sword and Void Flicker, he was already capable of trading blows with Void Shattering powerhouses. However, his grotto-heaven was too fragile and his origin too meager. He might hold his own against a Void Shattering expert in a brief clash, but if the battle dragged on, his grotto-heaven would become unstable—falling into what was commonly termed running out of true qi and lacking stamina. Now, having unlocked the Great Dao of Origin, Sovereign Human Emperor—with its insights leading directly to major mastery... He would truly possess the foundation to confront any Void Shattering cultivator head-on. "I already possess several Dao artifacts. Once this Dao art is mastered, there will be virtually no difference between me and an ordinary Void Shattering cultivator," Yaoguang mused. Only at this moment could he truly be considered standing at the pinnacle of Beihai Star, ranked among the top tier just beneath Dao Lords. He now held absolute confidence in smoothly presiding over the upcoming Dao artifact auction. "Aside from Sovereign Human Emperor, there is another very peculiar Dao art among the newly acquired information." Yaoguang's thoughts settled upon a Dao art called the Torrent of Time. Among the one thousand and eighty-eight Dao arts he had learned previously, not a single one touched upon the Grand Daos of Fate, Karma, or Time. Yet this time... A brand-new Time Dao art had appeared, coming as quite a surprise. The Grand Daos held no inherent hierarchy; all of them were integral parts that built a complete world and universe. Just as all men were equal in the face of life, in the eyes of many, the life of a peerless tycoon carried vastly different weight compared to that of a common mortal. Thus, the Three Thousand Grand Daos were similarly distinguished into Supreme Great Daos, Core Great Daos, and Ordinary Great Daos. The Grand Dao of the Void was the foundation of all existence, possessing an exceedingly low floor and an extraordinarily high ceiling. As for the remaining three Supreme Great Daos... Those were the ones that truly displayed supreme majesty. Across Beihai Star, there were many cultivators practicing divine abilities related to Fate, Karma, and Time, but leave alone successfully merging with the Dao to become a Dao Lord, even deriving a single Dao art was exceedingly rare. Yet the Torrent of Time before him was a Dao art that could lead him all the way to major mastery. Yaoguang probed the Dao art for a moment, swiftly comprehending its profound mysteries. "This is essentially dual casting... Through the influence of the Grand Dao of Time, a cultivator can release Dao arts at twice the normal speed... If one uses the major mastery of the Grand Dao of Time to cast a minor-mastery Dao art, it becomes fourfold speed, and for a newly initiated Dao art... the casting speed increases tenfold!" While others cast a single Dao art, he could unleash ten... It was nothing short of a deluge of Dao arts. This technique nearly doubled a cultivator's combat prowess. "Both Sovereign Human Emperor and the Torrent of Time are profoundly important Dao arts. Used well, they can allow the weak to triumph over the strong... Dao Lord Penglai is the prime example! The reason she was able to force the Tianhai Sword Pavilion to shut its gates, seize the territory of Demon Saint Yulin, and establish the Penglai Immortal Sect was precisely because her Great Dao of Origin and the Dao arts derived from it were overwhelmingly powerful." Yaoguang placed immense value on these two Dao arts. However... Compared to Sovereign Human Emperor, the Torrent of Time was noticeably more intricate. It would likely take a fair amount of time to master. It was just like someone who had already passed the college entrance examination; if asked to take it again, they would still need substantial review before feeling certain of matching their previous score. As he pondered, he withdrew his grotto-heaven, which had been warping the surrounding space. With his grotto-heaven retracted, he swept his gaze across his surroundings. Xuanmeng City was a massive metropolis once home to hundreds of thousands of cultivators. Although it had been reduced to a dead city due to the demonic cultivators' rampage, neighboring cities could not possibly ignore the situation here, whether to track demonic movements or for other reasons. In particular, the shockwaves unleashed during Yaoguang's fierce battle against the Void Piercing and Void Refining demons of the Shadow Moon Sect could be sensed even by Golden Core cultivators ten thousand li away. As news passed from ear to ear, by the time Yaoguang concluded his cultivation, not only had a number of Golden Core cultivators gathered nearby, but three Void Piercing experts had arrived as well. These three Void Piercing cultivators had recognized Yaoguang long ago and had voluntarily stood guard nearby while he refined the Shadow Moon Sect's Void Refining demon. Seeing Yaoguang stow his grotto-heaven and conclude his cultivation, they quickly stepped forward, bowing from a distance. "Greetings, Sect Master!" "We thank the Sect Master for slaying the vile demons and preserving the peace of Xuan Prefecture, Wu Prefecture, and He Prefecture!" Their words were laden with deep deference as they bowed. Yaoguang glanced over the three. Every Void Piercing cultivator was a renowned figure across Beihai Star. Among these three, one was a relatively marginal elder of the Heavenly Dao Sect whose Daoist name was Moxie. The other two were True Monarch Wuyin, who presided over Wu Prefecture, and True Monarch Jianyu of the Winged Sword Sect in He Prefecture. Both factions were subordinate forces of the Heavenly Dao Sect. After all, this region bordered the Shadow Moon Sect. Unless an elder within the Heavenly Dao Sect had been exiled, who would voluntarily come to the front lines to face the deadly threat of the Shadow Moon Sect? Only those Void Piercing cultivators who lacked territory and backers would risk their lives to claim a prefecture, establishing their sects and continuing their lineages in exchange for guarding the Heavenly Dao Sect's borders. Looking at them, Yaoguang gave a slight nod and spoke, "The Shadow Moon Sect demon has been executed. If more demonic cultivators dare invade, show no mercy—strike them down on sight! Should any Void Piercing demon appear, report it immediately!" With that, his tone grew slightly stern. "Often, reinforcements from the Heavenly Dao Sect are too far away to help in time. But now that I oversee the Southern Domain, I will never permit the Shadow Moon Sect to run rampant here again. Likewise, I will not tolerate anyone feigning compliance while secretly failing to report roaming demonic cultivators for personal reasons. Do you understand?" "Please rest assured, Sect Master! Since we have pledged our allegiance to the Heavenly Dao Sect, we will remain steadfast in our stance," True Monarch Wuyin answered promptly. True Monarch Jianyu reacted even faster, chiming in at once, "Since our Winged Sword Sect resides in the Southern Domain, we naturally follow the lead of Sect Master Yaoguang, Lord of the Southern Domain! Sect Master, please be at ease—we will exert every effort to safeguard He Prefecture for you!" Hearing True Monarch Jianyu's words, True Monarch Wuyin quickly caught on. When Sect Master Yaoguang said the Heavenly Dao Sect's reinforcements were too far away, he was implying that from now on, his word was law in the Southern Domain. They only needed to obey his commands as Lord of the Southern Domain. The orders of the Heavenly Dao Sect... Ranked second to this Lord of the Southern Domain. Realizing this, True Monarch Wuyin hastily added, "From this day forward, if Sect Master Yaoguang has any commands, simply give the word! Wuyin will spare no effort to carry out whatever tasks the Sect Master assigns!" Yaoguang nodded slightly. Paying no further attention to Moxie, his figure flickered, preparing to depart. Just then, Moxie stepped forward and called out, "Sect Master, please wait!" "Mm?" Yaoguang glanced at this elder from the main lineage of the Heavenly Dao Sect. "What is it?" "The Void Refining demon the Sect Master slew just now... was it Xie Tong, the peak master of Evil Eye Peak, one of the twenty-three peaks of the Shadow Moon Sect?" "Indeed," Yaoguang replied with a slight nod. "Does the Sect Master know why I chose to come to such a perilous borderland as Xuan Prefecture?" As Moxie spoke, he seemed to feel his question was somewhat self-indulgent and let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "A thousand years ago, Sect Master Song expanded our territory, and my Mo family settled and multiplied in Xuan Prefecture. Eight hundred years ago, Sect Master Song was executed for treason, and the Shadow Moon Sect seized the opportunity to invade en masse. In that single battle, every one of the one thousand three hundred and eighty-six members of my Mo family... perished without exception..." A flicker of anguish crossed his eyes. "Six hundred years ago, I attained the Void Piercing realm and voluntarily requested to be assigned to Xuan Prefecture, solely to fight the Shadow Moon Sect. Yet during all these years when the Sect Master acted as caretaker of the Southern Domain, the sect sought only self-preservation and refused to expand northward. Six hundred years... I have squandered six hundred whole years..." With that, the Void Piercing elder stared intently at Yaoguang with burning eyes. "Now, the Southern Domain has a new master. Sect Master Yaoguang's talent, methods, and boldness surpass even those of Sect Master Song back then! In you, Sect Master, I see the opportunity for the Southern Domain to launch a counteroffensive against the Shadow Moon Sect and expand our borders once more! Therefore... I implore Sect Master Yaoguang: if you ever wage war against the Shadow Moon Sect in the future, I am willing to serve as your vanguard, fighting on the very front lines against them!" Hearing Moxie's words, Yaoguang felt a stir in his heart. "If you have spent six hundred years yearning to counterattack the Shadow Moon Sect, you must possess a profound understanding of them?" Yaoguang inquired. Spirit invigorated, Moxie responded eagerly, "Over all these years, I have continuously gathered intelligence on the Shadow Moon Sect!" "Compile it and send it to me," Yaoguang instructed. The Southern Domain bordered the Shadow Moon Sect, and skirmishes between the two sides had never ceased. This time, the Shadow Moon Sect had sent a Void Refining powerhouse straight into the heart of the Southern Domain. Sooner or later, both sides would clash in a major war. Only by knowing oneself and knowing the enemy could one emerge victorious in every battle.