Chapter 221 : Gathering of the Strong

Chapter 221: Gathering of the Strong

Dragon-Gate Mountain Range.

One hundred thousand green peaks stretched endlessly, like a slumbering azure dragon, harboring countless beast creatures. Among them were no shortage of Third-Tier beasts, and it was rumored that deep within the mountains, there even existed Fourth-Tier Mystic Beasts with strength comparable to Nascent Soul True Monarchs.

Such beings were called Beast Kings by cultivators of the Southern Wastes. From time to time, they would launch beast tides over territory and resource disputes, invading human lands and battling with the Greenwood Sect and Blazing Flame Sect.

‘Finally here.’

Chen Beiwu stood upon the deck of the warship, gazing toward a solitary peak at the mountain’s edge.

Unlike the towering peaks around it that pierced heaven and earth like celestial pillars, this lone peak was devoid of vegetation, its spiritual energy in chaos, as if some earth-shattering battle had once taken place there, cleaving the mountain in half.

The next moment, under Chen Beiwu’s astonished gaze, the earth veins beneath the solitary peak trembled, and ripples of spatial distortion surged across the heavens, as though some terrifying existence was about to descend.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

As heaven and earth’s spiritual currents rioted, the void above the mountain range split open with a thunderous roar, revealing web-like fissures of pitch-black space. Each rift stretched hundreds of feet long, exuding a chilling aura that made one’s hair stand on end.

“Turns out the Tianyan True Realm has yet to fully emerge.”

Senior Sister Feng’s eyes showed shock as she spoke, marveling at the overwhelming might of heaven and earth before her, and sighing at the unfathomable power of a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Even after their fall and death, the methods left behind by such an existence were enough to stir heaven and earth, drawing countless cultivators to converge.

Just then, Chen Beiwu suddenly lifted his gaze toward the northwest.

There, a colossal warship clad in molten rock and with a roaring qilin carved into its prow streaked across the skies, closing in at great speed.

Following Chen Zi’ang’s gaze, Senior Sister Feng’s eyes flickered slightly as she said calmly: “That is the Blazing Flame Sect’s Qilin Warship.”

Among the Five Great Sects of the Earth Proliferation Territory, each excelled in different ways.

The Blazing Flame Sect’s arts were the strongest, the Profound Sword Pavilion’s combat strength was the fiercest, the Heavy Gold Sect’s body refinement the toughest, the Greenwood Sect’s spiritual plants the most superior, and the Mirror Moon Sect’s alchemy the most profound.

Of these, Mirror Moon Sect, Greenwood Sect, and Profound Sword Pavilion had good relations and could be considered allies, jointly countering the Blazing Flame Sect and Heavy Gold Sect, thus maintaining the surface order of the Earth Proliferation Territory.

In this secret realm exploration, the dangers they had to beware of included not only the Tianyan True Realm itself but also the threat posed by Foundation Establishment disciples of the Blazing Flame Sect and Heavy Gold Sect.

“Zhu Qiong, where are you? Do you dare come out and fight me?”

From the Qilin Warship suddenly shot out a streak of rainbow light. As the brilliance faded, it revealed the figure of a young cultivator.

He walked upon air, clad in crimson Daoist robes, with a fire-seed golden ring upon his right ear.

In his hand was a long spear of high spirituality, its flame-colored luster shifting with his mana. His entire being radiated an overbearing aura so intense that Foundation Establishment disciples of the Mirror Moon Sect revealed expressions of shock.

“That is the Blazing Flame Sect’s foremost true disciple of this generation—Luo Yongjie!” Senior Sister Feng’s gaze hardened.

Luo Yongjie possessed extraordinary talent. His spiritual root constitution was innately close to fire. At the age of seven, he successfully began cultivating the Blazing Flame Sect’s sect-guarding cultivation method, the [True Flame Heart Sutra of the Ashen Tribulation].

At thirty, he broke through to Foundation Establishment. At sixty, he advanced to its peak, daring to enter Dragon-Gate Mountain Range alone, where he speared to death a False Core True Person. His strength was indeed incomparably fierce.

However, the strong always had rivals. Among his generation, Luo Yongjie was not the absolute strongest. Since his rise, he had suffered only two defeats.

The first was under his sect’s very own foremost true disciple, Senior Sister Zhu Qiong. The second was under Profound Sword Pavilion’s foremost true disciple, Gu Jianfeng.

For Luo Yongjie to now come forth with such provocation, could it be that he intended to sharpen his spear upon Senior Sister Zhu Qiong, so as to charge at Golden Core?

Chen Beiwu looked at Luo Yongjie, his gaze filled with intrigue.

This foremost true disciple of the Blazing Flame Sect did indeed appear to possess considerable strength. Yet he wondered—could Luo Yongjie defeat both himself and Golden Egg in a one-on-one battle?

“Not here?” Luo Yongjie frowned slightly, his eyes flashing with regret.

He knew well Zhu Qiong’s temperament—provocation was something she never tolerated.

For him to openly issue a challenge now, and for her not to appear, meant Zhu Qiong was simply not aboard either of these Earthly Fiend warships.

‘So be it. Once I defeat Gu Jianfeng, I shall step upon the Mirror Moon Sect’s mountain gate, issue a challenge to Zhu Qiong, and wash away my shame.’

Luo Yongjie shook his head. Ignoring the gazes of the Mirror Moon Sect disciples, his figure flickered, and he returned to the Qilin Warship.

Among the true disciples of the Mirror Moon Sect, only Zhu Qiong was worthy of his regard.

The rest were but clay chickens and earthen dogs, too weak to merit even a glance.

“Hu!”

Seeing Luo Yongjie depart, Gong Junkai and Mu Xinyan could not help but exhale in relief.

Even among true disciples, there were great disparities. Not to mention that their own rankings on the Mirror Moon list were outside the top ten, utterly incapable of matching such a heaven-blessed genius as the foremost true disciple.

Had Luo Yongjie continued his challenge, then for the sake of their sect’s dignity, they would have had no choice but to step forth, even knowing defeat was inevitable.

“Something is off. Luo Yongjie has grown even stronger. If you happen to encounter him alone within the Tianyan True Realm, it is best to avoid him. If you cannot avoid him, don’t cling to face—just surrender directly.” Senior Sister Feng spoke gravely.

She had once personally witnessed the duel between her senior sister and Luo Yongjie.

Back then, Luo Yongjie’s aura had been nowhere near as overwhelmingly unmatched as it was today. Now, he gave her the suffocating sense of being utterly invincible, to the point she could not even summon the will to fight.

‘Strange… could it be that he has already gathered sufficient top-grade Earthly Fiend Qi and refined it into a trace of undying mana?’ Feng Yao bit her lip lightly, an inconceivable suspicion flashing in her heart.

If her guess were true, then the Blazing Flame Sect truly was ruthless.

For the sake of exploring the Tianyan True Realm and seizing the inheritance of a True Monarch and the Core-Forming Pill, they would actually suppress the cultivation realm of such a genius, forcing him to remain at Foundation Establishment—even at the risk of his death within the secret realm.

Buzz!

At last, having reached their destination, the Earthly Fiend Warships began their descent.

“Heavy Gold Warship.”

“Profound Sword Swordship.”

“Greenwood Vine-Ship.”

“Earthly Fiend Warship.”

“Qilin Warship.”

As the five sects’ Third-Tier warships settled around the half-cut solitary peak, countless Foundation Establishment beasts within Dragon-Gate Mountain Range revealed wary eyes.

Only one colossal beast over ten zhang tall snorted in disdain.

This beast bore three eyes, its vertical golden-purple pupil set upon its forehead. Its head resembled a ferocious lion, muscles knotted, spine rising like a mountain ridge.

Blue-violet lightning arcs danced across its body, thunder-fire flaring with each breath, its roar like ten thousand drums in unison. Clearly, it was the king of this horde of Foundation Establishment beasts.

【Species】: Heaven-Shaking Thunder Hou

【Attribute】: Lightning, Fire

【Bloodline】: Fourth-Tier Mid-Grade (Mystic Beast)

【Cultivation Years】: Over five hundred

Chen Beiwu’s gaze froze slightly, drawn to this nearby behemoth.

The Heaven-Shaking Thunder Hou was an ancient extinct variant of the Sky Abyss Star. Within its body slumbered a trace of bloodline lineage that could be traced back to primeval times, to an innate thunder beast that wielded heavenly punishment, infamous for its boundless ferocity.

On the ranking list of Celestial Mystic Beasts, the Heaven-Shaking Thunder Hou was placed at thirty-third, the dream Companion Beast of all cultivators with lightning-attribute spiritual roots.

It was no exaggeration to say that such a noble-blooded Fourth-Tier Mystic Beast was worth a fortune. Even a Nascent Soul True Monarch of the Immortal Alliance would strike without hesitation to subdue it—perhaps even luring a Spirit-Transformation True Venerable to personally intervene.