Connecting to the Network

“So many immortal spirits?!” Yaoguang was secretly astounded. Even in the Hunyuan Realm, immortal spirits were high-level beings. Every sapient spirit had to start from Level 1, cultivating and transforming step-by-step before finally entering the realm of immortality. Yet the moment he “connected to the network,” he sensed millions of immortal spirits… And these were only the immortal spirits residing in the “Immortal Realm Zone,” which naturally filled him with quiet amazement. Immediately afterward, however, he realized this was an inter-realm war! In a war between two realms, for the Hunyuan Realm to dispatch millions of immortal spirits into the Ancient Immortal Realm was not a vast figure at all—if anything, it was somewhat on the low side. Even a mobilization of hundreds of millions, billions, or tens of billions would not have been surprising. After making slight contact, Yaoguang quickly realized the reason. The average level of the immortal spirits present was remarkably high. Hardly any were below Level 15. In other words, those deployed here were the absolute elite of the elite. Viewed in that light, having only several million was entirely reasonable. “The authority a Level 16 immortal spirit can wield is on par with an immortal. Level 17 points straight toward Immortal Venerable, and Level 18 rivals an Immortal King… Of course, not every Level 18 immortal spirit possesses the realm of an Immortal King in the Ancient Immortal Realm. But once someone reaches the Immortal King realm, the relevant experience they contribute toward ascending to Immortal King allows them to elevate their clearance with the Lord of Yuanxi to Level 18.” Yaoguang quietly sensed the authority of his own clearance, which had now risen to Tier 17. If he exercised this authority and received the computing power augmentation of the Lord of Yuanxi, it would be virtually equivalent to instantly elevating his mental consciousness and level of comprehension to rival an Immortal Venerable. In such a state, whether he was advancing his cultivation or comprehending Dao arts, he would operate with the insights of an Immortal Venerable. The efficiency of that… Would be nothing short of advancing by leaps and bounds. “No wonder reaching a given clearance essentially guarantees cultivation up to the corresponding level—it is merely a question of time… To some degree, having a Tier 17 clearance holder cultivate into an Immortal Venerable is almost like having someone who once possessed the insights of an Immortal Venerable reincarnate and recultivate. Provided the resources are available, there are virtually no bottlenecks.” Yaoguang pondered in silence. “Not only that, when battling an Immortal Venerable of the same realm, an Immortal Venerable augmented by Tier 17 clearance effectively has another Immortal Venerable assisting from the side. Although this assistant does not strike directly, it can calculate and discern the opponent’s flaws, thereby unleashing far greater combat prowess.” In cultivation, the natives could not compete; in battle, the natives could not win. No wonder every cultivator from the Hunyuan Realm looked down on others from on high, dismissing the indigenous cultivators of the Ancient Immortal Realm as mere natives. Between the two… It was essentially the difference between players and wild mobs. Given the same stats and the same level, how could a mob ever defeat a player? Not only did they possess an advantage in every conceivable aspect, but in the transmission of information, they left the isolated, fragmented native cultivators light-years behind. At this moment, Yaoguang saw countless immortal spirits continuously posting messages: “Discovered an immortal-level native cultivator, Challenge Level 20–25. Seeking teammates of Level 15–20 for assistance.” “One volume of cultivation insights for the Grand Grade Golden Immortal Scripture, covering content up to Level 50. Trading for Level 30 equipment usable for the Grand Dao of Darkness.” “Selling class advancement materials for the Dao of Chaos ‘Earth Immortal,’ including corresponding heaven-and-earth treasures for the Dao of Chaos, a class advancement manual, and blessed land coordinates.” “Seeking an artificer to craft Level 100 Grand Dao of Destruction equipment. Materials provided, 300,000 immortal coins crafting fee. Must hold a Level 17 Artificer Certificate.” “Artificers, alchemists, and formation masters are so sought after right now—you think 300,000 immortal coins can hire a Level 17 artificer to craft for you? What a joke!” Countless message packets akin to divine senses flashed and intertwined across this world. Yaoguang cast a casual glance, yet with the computational power at his disposal, he found it somewhat overwhelming to process all at once. After familiarizing himself for a moment, he soon realized these chaotic streams of information could be filtered. Moreover, there was a vast array of filtering criteria. For instance: region, profession, realm, funds, clearance level, and more. He could choose to view only the information of a specific region, or postings related to a certain class of immortal or Grand Dao. He could also filter for only immortal-level information, posts from Tier 16 clearance holders and above, and so forth—exceptionally convenient. Yaoguang focused his gaze on the selectable regional scopes… They were categorized into the Virtual Immortal Realm, the Thirty-Six Continents, followed by domains, sects, and kingdoms. A kingdom was the smallest unit. After a moment’s thought, Yaoguang swiftly located a “positioning” function. Before long, he pinpointed his current location: Yunhai Continent, Bahuang Domain, Xuanyuan Sect, Feicui Kingdom. He searched for a moment and quickly found an introduction to the Feicui Kingdom. However, obtaining detailed information required payment. All kingdoms were typically founded by Dao Lords. Nevertheless, some kingdoms no longer had a Dao Lord presiding over them, merely clinging to survival under the lingering shade of their ancestors. The immortal sects above kingdoms referred to lineages established by immortals, while the domain lords above them were governed by Immortal Venerables. As for the Nine Great Groups, every single one was a colossus spanning multiple continents—or rather, projecting its sphere of influence into every continent. Nearly every continent had an Immortal King stationed within it. “This makes things convenient. What I must understand first is my greatest adversary…” Yaoguang quickly initiated a search for information related to the “Void Immortal King.” “There is only one Immortal King of the Grand Dao of the Void: Tianyuan Group director Tianyu!” He scrolled down slightly through this director’s profile. Although it contained only surface-level details, the fact that this Immortal King commanded over 3,500 shares of the Grand Dao of the Void demonstrated his immense weight among the various Immortal Kings. Presently, he was the second-in-command of the Tianyuan Group. Not only was he exceedingly powerful, but his clearance level stood as high as Level 19, marking him as a Tier 19 immortal spirit. Immortal spirits of this caliber belonged to the absolute upper echelon of the entire Hunyuan Realm. Apart from the Level 20 immortal spirits that could be counted on both hands, they were already considered the strongest beings within the Hunyuan Realm. After browsing for a moment, Yaoguang turned his attention to the chairman of the Tianyuan Group. This chairman was a pinnacle Immortal King of the Dao of Chaos who styled himself Immortal King Yuankun, commanding nearly 4,000 shares of the Grand Dao of Chaos. His strength was roughly neck and neck with the Void Immortal King’s. Such a balance of power… “Can two tigers share the same mountain?” Yaoguang searched for detailed dossiers on both individuals. The result… A paywall appeared. At present, he possessed not a single immortal coin usable in the Virtual Immortal Realm, so he naturally could not afford it. “Immortal coins… pegged directly to Dao shares? One Dao share already sells for ten thousand immortal coins?” Yaoguang checked the listings and found that the prices for dossiers on Immortal Kings Yuankun and Tianyu varied drastically. The lowest was listed at just 1 immortal coin. The highest soared to 30 million immortal coins. Seeing the price tag of 30 million immortal coins left Yaoguang somewhat speechless. With that sum of money, one could purchase 3,000 Dao shares. Provided one’s realm was sufficient, refining 3,000 Dao shares would leave a cultivator barely weaker than Immortal Kings Yuankun and Tianyu. Who would still need to buy their dossiers? No matter how he looked at it, such postings seemed completely unreliable. “Couldn't the Lord of Yuanxi introduce an authentication feature to evaluate whether this information is genuinely worth the price? Are these immortal spirits really permitted to set arbitrary prices and disrupt the market?” Yaoguang muttered a silent grievance. Left with no other choice, he directed his attention toward rumors and gossip regarding the Tianyuan Group. Gossip… Was thoroughly wild. Truth and falsehood were hopelessly tangled, making it impossible to verify anything with certainty. Even so, between the lines of certain rumors, Yaoguang managed to glean a few premises for deduction. After a careful analysis, he extracted some intelligence that seemed provisionally credible: “The Tianyuan Group was co-founded by two Tier 19 immortal spirits: one was the previous chairman, Tianxu, and the other is the current chairman, Yuankun. However, in an effort to reach Level 20 clearance, Tianxu turned his sights toward the Gate of Fate. As fate would have it, he was ambushed by native cultivators and unfortunately perished. The current Immortal King Tianyu… is considered the successor to Immortal King Tianxu.” Flipping through these somewhat useful materials, he gradually formed a clearer picture. Although the Tianyuan Group had been jointly founded by the two Tier 19 clearance holders, Tianxu and Yuankun, Tianxu had held the reins of authority throughout its establishment and expansion. As a result, many immortal spirits within the Tianyuan Group remained deeply devoted to him. Furthermore, Tianxu’s successor, Immortal King Tianyu, was formidable in his own right, having recently elevated his clearance to Level 19. Many older immortal spirits had stepped forward, hoping Immortal King Yuankun would relinquish the chairman’s seat to Immortal King Tianyu. Yet now that power was firmly in his grasp, how could Immortal King Yuankun willingly let it go? Entangled interests between the old and new factions naturally bubbled to the surface. The reason Yaoguang placed a measure of trust in these rumors was that the leaks originated from factions like the Changsheng Group, the Creation Group, and the Shenluo Group. Their objective, of course, was to tarnish the Tianyuan Group’s prestige. The power struggles among the Nine Great Groups were almost out in the open. While Immortal Kings had not stepped onto the battlefield in person, clashes between Immortal Venerables erupted from time to time, even if not yet frequent. Trading defamatory leaks was child’s play by comparison. “Now that I know who the enemy is, the next step… is finding an entry point. Do I join Immortal King Yuankun’s faction in the Tianyuan Group to oppose Immortal King Tianyu, or… do I start from the Creation Group or Xiyu Group, climb to a high position, and then incite internal strife among the Nine Great Groups…” Just as Yaoguang was pondering his next move, his senses twitched, and an unusual expression surfaced on his face. …… In the starry sky of the lower realm. Aboard a warship sailing rapidly through the void, a Dao Lord suppressed by Yaoguang continued to issue threats: “My Creation Sect is destined to unify the cosmic starry sky! If you obstinately oppose my Creation Sect to the bitter end, you will inevitably invite the annihilating strike of our Creation Sect’s Dao Sovereign!” Yaoguang said nothing. Instead, he directly used the Grand Dao Pagoda to execute a soul secret art, observing the fluctuations dissipating from this Dao Lord’s soul. Moments ago, when Yaoguang captured this Dao Lord, he had displayed the combat prowess of an invincible Dao Lord. Yet this Dao Lord had shown not the slightest fear, even bringing up the Dao Sovereign behind him. That had caused Yaoguang to realize something. The Dao Sovereign backing this Dao Lord… Was very likely a genuine Dao Sovereign! Combined with the name “Creation Sect,” it was impossible not to draw certain connections.