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At the Taiyi Immortal Sect. Supreme Elder Yuhuang looked at Sect Master True Monarch Taiyuan, who had brought him the news, a trace of shock visible in his eyes. "Void Shattering?" "Void Shattering." As True Monarch Taiyuan spoke, he produced an invitation. "Compared to the obscurity of his breakthroughs into Void Piercing and Void Refining, he clearly intends to make a tremendous spectacle of this Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony. He means to demonstrate his presence to the Heavenly Dao Sect, to the entire Ten Immortal Sects, and to all of Beihai Star." Supreme Elder Yuhuang took the invitation. This invitation was addressed to him. The Ten Immortal Sects shared a common ideology. Disciples frequently addressed one another as martial brothers, but among the leadership... Competition over interests was rampant. At times they came to blows, fighting until blood flowed and lives were lost on the spot, yet on the surface they still maintained a veneer of unity. The invitations Yaoguang sent naturally extended to everyone in the Taiyi Immortal Sect. Of course, just as ordinary people inviting someone to a feast would courteously invite the guest's whole family, how many actually showed up depended entirely on the host's influence. "Void Shattering," Supreme Elder Yuhuang murmured with a sigh. "I had thought he would need at least another century..." "The transition from Void Refining to Void Shattering is primarily a phase of accumulating resources. I, too, assumed this process would consume a considerable amount of time. Throughout Beihai Star's history, anyone who bridged this gap within a thousand years surpassed ninety percent of all cultivators. Yet Yaoguang... took only thirty years." True Monarch Taiyuan said with deep emotion, "After achieving Void Piercing, he stepped into Void Refining in ten years, and Void Shattering in thirty... Truly... unbelievable. Even Dao Lord Penglai in her day was half a step slower than him." "Tell me..." Supreme Elder Yuhuang looked at his sect master. "Could Dao Lord Penglai truly be supporting him with all her might?" "In the past, I scoffed whenever anyone brought up that theory. After all, not even a Dao Lord's personal disciple would receive such treatment. Which Dao Lord would personally guide and protect someone beneath the Dao Lord realm to such an extent? But now..." True Monarch Taiyuan shook his head. "I can no longer say for certain." He could no longer be certain. And at this point... Certainty was no longer the point anyway. "Will you go?" True Monarch Taiyuan looked up and asked. Supreme Elder Yuhuang pondered for a long while before speaking: "In the end, I must go. Meeting him face-to-face and clearing up certain misunderstandings is the only right course." He glanced at True Monarch Taiyuan. "Otherwise, once that Yaoguang becomes the Sect Master of the Heavenly Dao Sect, meeting him again will bring no small amount of trouble." "Trouble is not the primary issue. The Heavenly Dao Sect is the Heavenly Dao Sect, and the Taiyi Immortal Sect is the Taiyi Immortal Sect. What worries me is if this Sect Master Yaoguang... can take yet another step forward in the future." "Another step forward?! That... He cultivates the Grand Dao of the Void... With both a mortal tribulation and a Dao assimilation tribulation, the dual perils make it immensely difficult, don't they?" "Who knows? As long as one hides far enough and advances fast enough, the mortal tribulation can still be circumvented," True Monarch Taiyuan mused with a sigh. "Otherwise, why would Dao Lords of the Void path still be slowly increasing in number?" Supreme Elder Yuhuang fell silent at his words. Only after a good while did he say, "Originally, when we spoke of Yaoguang, we discussed when he might achieve Void Shattering. But now... it is already Dao Integration... And none of us any longer doubt that he can reach the threshold of that realm." True Monarch Taiyuan gave a wry smile and nodded. Yaoguang... Had truly raised their expectations of him higher and higher, step by step. "So, what do you plan to send as a congratulatory gift?" True Monarch Taiyuan asked. "A congratulatory gift..." Supreme Elder Yuhuang pondered, not answering. At this moment, True Monarch Taiyuan added, "A year ago, a Demon King hunted south. That Demon King happened to invade at a moment when the garrison defender was absent. As a result, the personnel of the frontier battleline and battle hall fled without fighting before even clashing with the Demon King, allowing a hundred thousand cultivators across two major border cities to be devoured clean." He paused. "Jiang Tianzun was one of the Void Piercing Battle Immortals guarding the border. According to sect regulations, fleeing without battle and causing the loss of cities can, at worst, result in immediate expulsion from the sect." Supreme Elder Yuhuang instantly understood the sect master's meaning. He was slightly taken aback. "This... is not entirely appropriate, is it? It will be difficult to explain to the Cangwu Lineage." "He is merely a Void Piercing Battle Immortal. How much weight do you think he still carries with the Cangwu Lineage?" True Monarch Taiyuan said. He looked at Supreme Elder Yuhuang. "Give it some careful thought... If it is inconvenient for you to step forward, I can handle it on your behalf." Supreme Elder Yuhuang considered the achievements Yaoguang possessed at this very moment... Void Shattering! With his current rate of growth, even if he failed to attain Dao Integration in the future, he would inevitably become one of the most supreme figures among all Void Shattering cultivators. Such a figure... "No further thought is needed." Supreme Elder Yuhuang looked at him. "I ask the Sect Master to act on my behalf and present this gift." "Very well." True Monarch Taiyuan nodded slightly. "Only then will all prejudices between your two sides be truly dissolved, turning weapons of war into gifts of jade and silk." Supreme Elder Yuhuang let out a wry laugh and spoke no more. *** While True Monarch Taiyuan, Sect Master of the Taiyi Immortal Sect, received the invitation, the members of the Cangwu Lineage received it as well. The gazes of the various Void Piercing Battle Immortals fell upon the most prestigious among them—Xie Xiong, Gelin, and Li An—waiting for them to make the final call. "Are we going?" Li An turned his eyes toward Xie Xiong and Gelin, who possessed seniority over him. Xie Xiong and Gelin exchanged a glance and nodded in unison. "We go." "After all, we must meet this supreme prodigy of our Cangwu Great World," Gelin added. Xie Xiong nodded as well. Normally, if they sought an audience with Yaoguang, they likely would not even get to see him. It would be considered courteous enough if he simply sent "veterans" of the Cangwu Great World like Wan Liugui or Li Hanqiu to receive them. This Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony... Would likely be a rare opportunity to meet Yaoguang in person. And once they met... Everything that needed to be said could be laid out openly. They did not expect to bask in any of Yaoguang's glory in the future, but at the very least, they could not let Yaoguang harbor lingering hatred toward them. Otherwise... The complete extinction of their lineage would only be a matter of time. At this moment, Li An seemed to remember something and turned his gaze to Jin Rui. "How are Elders Laoshan and Holden right now...?" Jin Rui, who oversaw intelligence for the Cangwu Lineage, looked downcast. "Both elders fought continuously for the sake of the Cangwu Lineage over the years, until they could no longer stabilize the primal caverns within their bodies. They passed away four years ago." Li An, Gelin, and Xie Xiong looked at each other and sighed inwardly. Those two Void Piercing Battle Immortals were the very ones who had nearly attacked Yaoguang back at the Biyou Immortal Market. Of course, because Dao Lord Penglai had already escorted Yaoguang to the Heavenly Dao Sect at the time, they had never actually crossed paths with him. Yet the event had happened, and none could turn a blind eye to it. Consequently, when Yaoguang attained Void Refining and became Deputy Sect Master of the Heavenly Dao Sect, those two Battle Immortals tactfully volunteered to depart for the Extraterritorial Battlefield. Until their deaths four years ago. The concrete details behind that... All of them understood in their hearts. "Let us prepare a generous gift," Gelin said, adding, "Take that flying boat we originally intended... take it out and present it as a gift." "A flying boat... That flying boat might not catch Sect Master Yaoguang's eye now. After all, he has even put Dao artifact flying boats up for sale... Compared to that flying boat, I think the star chart we prepared would be far more fitting," Li An said. "Send both," Xie Xiong said with a wave of his hand. "Whether a star chart or a flying boat, neither amounts to much in the eyes of Sect Master Yaoguang today. What matters is our sincerity... the finest sincerity our Cangwu Lineage can muster with all our strength." Hearing Xie Xiong's words, Gelin and Li An said no more. "May this trip proceed smoothly." *** While those in the Taiyi Immortal Sect were buzzing with discussion, the Void Piercing and Void Refining elders within the Heavenly Dao Sect were equally bewildered upon learning of Yaoguang's advancement to Void Shattering. In particular, the masters of the four lineages overseeing the sect's daily operations, along with Supreme Elders Zhen Xuanyuan, Chi Yun, Jing Yuntian, and others guarding the sect, all wore complicated expressions. Some even harbored secret regret; had they known Yaoguang would advance to Void Shattering so quickly, they would not have been in such a rush to propose "raising taxes." At the very least... They should have waited until the Sect Master returned. Letting the Sect Master take the blame. Yet saying all this now was too late. Yaoguang had chosen not to hold the Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony in Nandu, but rather at the Heavenly Dao Sect itself, making it glaringly obvious that he came with ill intent. Under these circumstances... The masters of the four lineages naturally sent urgent transmissions one after another to Sect Master Zong Wenxian, who was still delayed by the God race. *** Time slipped by, and another half a year passed. Just as numerous factions gave definite confirmation that they would attend Yaoguang's Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony, Yaoguang also completed the re-refinement of the Wuji Sword. Sensing the Wuji Sword settling harmoniously into his body... Coupled with the Dao arts he had brought to perfection over these years—Void Blink, Void Blade, Great Annihilation Sword Qi, and Light of the True Spirit—Yaoguang appeared entirely calm. He stepped straight out of Hundred Refinements Peak and began gathering his subordinates. In just a few days, numerous experts throughout the Southern Domain had assembled. Among them were Void Piercing cultivators from various provinces who had recently pledged allegiance, but the core remained Yaoguang's own retinue. He had Wan Liugui stay behind in Nandu, while selecting core members of the Nine Cauldrons Sect lineage—Li Hanqiu, Li Qingshan, and Lou Yuyu—intending to bring them along so they could broaden their horizons at a top-tier great sect. At the same time, he called upon Ling Ruogu and Chi Yu. In recent times, both of their families had flourished dramatically in the Southern Domain, a sharp contrast to their past status as virtually invisible nobodies in the Heavenly Dao Sect. It was time for them to return and savor the gratification of coming home in glory. Beyond these people, Yaoguang's gaze swept over Wu Changfeng and Qi Sha. "Wu Changfeng will remain to watch over the Southern Domain for me. Qi Sha, prepare yourself and lead the Tianshang Battle Hall... Having been away for so long, it is time to return." "With the Sect Master's renown deterring all, no petty scoundrel in the Southern Domain would dare act insolently. Allow me to accompany you to the sect to handle trivial matters at your side," Wu Changfeng volunteered, aware that Yaoguang's return to the Heavenly Dao Sect would inevitably entail major maneuvers. "No matter. It is enough that you keep watch over the Southern Domain for me," Yaoguang said. "Those petty scoundrels dare not act recklessly, but the Shadow Moon Sect is still out there. No one can say whether they might suddenly flare up and launch a massive invasion under the pretext of avenging the two Devil Masters, Bahuang and Darkness. With you keeping watch, I can be at ease." Seeing this, Wu Changfeng could not insist further. With that, Yaoguang waved his hand. The personnel of the Southern Domain, along with the vast material resources required to host the Void Shattering Advancement Grand Ceremony, swiftly assembled. Three days later, a colossal fleet consisting of one Dao artifact-grade warship and thirty Jiuzhou warships soared into the sky above Nandu, charting a direct course toward the Heavenly Dao Sect.