Chapter 217: Heavenly Pillar Realm

The proposal to revoke a guest official’s status required approval from at least half of the attending Emperors. So when it came to this proposal, abstaining... was effectively the same as opposing it.

Emperor Yan stared at Emperor Fu.

He had always valued Emperor Fu highly. They were both among the earliest Emperors of the Ancient Flame Kingdom—Emperor Yan being the first, and Emperor Fu the second. The earliest Emperors had been relatively united.

Later, Emperor Fu gave up his Primordial Bloodline and chose reincarnation, and afterward became even more formidable.

He refined his body with formations alone, barely relying on external forces, and achieved the Ultimate Divine Life Form. This had shocked the entire Origin Continent.

Emperor Yan could also judge that Emperor Fu was likely to be the next Emperor Qing! Even if he couldn’t break through during this cycle of reincarnation, he would do so in the longer timespan after leaving the Source World. Emperor Fu’s potential was far greater than that of the trio of Emperors, which was why Emperor Yan had always maintained a good relationship with him.

Who would have thought that over such a trivial matter today, Emperor Fu would stand in opposition to him?

“Emperor Yan.” Emperor Fu spoke. “Luo He became a Divine King only a little over two hundred eras ago. To strip him of his guest official title just because he hasn’t taken on a task in that time—if word of this gets out, it’ll reflect poorly on us. After all... the right to refuse tasks was established by the Ancestor.”

Emperor Yan looked at Emperor Fu.

Though Emperor Fu spoke gently, once he made his point, there was no room for persuasion.

“Forget it.” Emperor Yan’s figure immediately dispersed, withdrawing. As he left, Emperor Xi and Emperor Wu also departed.

“Does he really think the Ancient Flame Kingdom is still under his reign?” Emperor Kong sneered. “Still dreaming of doing whatever he wants!”

One by one, the Emperors began to take their leave.

“Emperor Chu.” Emperor Fu called out. Soon, the vast space was left with only Emperor Fu and Emperor Chu.

“Emperor Fu, thank you for this time.” Emperor Chu smiled. Emperor Fu had cast the final vote. Had he agreed... then Luo He’s guest official status would have been revoked. That final vote had been crucial.

Emperor Fu smiled. “In this matter, Luo He truly wasn’t at fault. I’ve reviewed the task assigned to him by Emperor Yan and the others—asking him to split into 192 clones to tend to Primordial Bloodline Beast Eggs for a full three thousand eras! For an average Second Stage Divine King, three thousand eras might not be long. But Luo He reached the Second Stage just over two hundred eras after becoming a Divine King. He’s currently advancing rapidly in cultivation. Making him waste three thousand eras on this... anyone would refuse!”

“Exactly. Luo He is at a critical point in his cultivation. If he were stuck at a bottleneck for millions of eras with no progress, then having him take on the task would be reasonable,” Emperor Chu nodded. “But at this moment, it’s definitely unsuitable.”

“Still, after becoming a Divine King, Luo He hasn’t taken on any tasks.” Emperor Fu said. “I think if he takes on a task soon, Emperor Yan and the others will lose their justification.”

“He can take a task.”

Emperor Chu nodded. “But it must not interfere with Luo He’s cultivation.”

“I have a task here. See what you think.” Emperor Fu immediately sent a task to Emperor Chu.

“Guard the entrance to the first treasure land ‘Heavenly Pillar Realm’ for one thousand eras?” Emperor Chu’s eyes lit up as he read it. “Excellent, this is perfect.”

Emperor Fu smiled. “Though guarding the entrance requires splitting into thirty-six clones, it doesn’t demand much effort. Only when an enemy invades does combat become necessary. In a thousand eras, combat opportunities will be extremely rare.”

“No objections.” Emperor Chu nodded with a smile. “This is great.”

This kind of task was the kind that guest official Divine Kings competed for.

First, the mental strain was negligible—practically effortless.

Second, it provided an opportunity to explore portions of the first treasure land, ‘Heavenly Pillar Realm’.

“Then I’ll send the task to Luo He.” Emperor Fu nodded.

Soon after, Emperor Chu bid farewell to Emperor Fu with a cheerful smile, clearly in high spirits.

Only Emperor Fu remained in the vast, expansive space.

“Luo He...”

As Emperor Fu stood there, an enormous formation emerged within the vast space. As the formation activated, countless secrets of the Origin Continent were revealed. Among them, the node concerning Luo He stood out prominently.

“Passed through reincarnation from the Primal Universe to the Origin Continent. Arrived as an Eternal True God.”

“Became a Divine King in just over one hundred eras.”

“Then, within just over two hundred more eras, reached Second Stage Divine King.”

“Moreover, favored by the Supreme Laws.”

“With this potential, once he leaves the Origin Continent, he will likely become my companion.” Emperor Fu contemplated.

When it came to deducing the mysteries of the Origin Continent, Emperor Fu ranked first.

Figures like the Queen Fengdu, Great Earth Divine King, Master of the Mother River, that mysterious being in the Shadow Heaven Realm, and the Fire Ancestor—all of them could rival Emperors despite being below their level. But none had succeeded in becoming an Ultimate Divine Life Form.

Emperor Fu had done it without consuming excessive precious treasures—he had simply refined his body through formations.

In terms of accumulation, he was the most likely in this era, after Emperor Qing and the Ruler of the Myriad Realms, to reach the Ultimate Divine Life Form.

“As the Ancestor said, after leaving the Origin Continent, dangers abound and survival is difficult.” Emperor Fu mused. “With personalities and potentials like Emperor Yan’s group, they are not suited to be companions.”

“Luo He... might be my true companion. I may even need his help.”

There were only a few individuals in the entire Origin Continent that Emperor Fu held in high regard—and Luo He was one of them.

Huyang City.

“This task?” Luo Feng looked at the task to guard the entrance of the Heavenly Pillar Realm. The task lasted one thousand eras and offered merely ten million guest official merits, yet Luo Feng was still stunned. “How did such a good task fall to me?”

Tasks like these were ones that guest official Divine Kings scrambled to obtain.

“The Heavenly Pillar Realm is the number one treasure land of the Origin Continent. The Two Ancient Kingdoms have spared no cost to completely seal off its entrance. Other forces can’t sneak in—they must break in.” Luo Feng understood this well. “The Heavenly Pillar Realm is definitely guarded by an Emperor and a Monarch.”

The Ancient Flame Kingdom would assign an Emperor, while the Ancient Thunder Kingdom would assign a Monarch—these were the core defenders.

“Luo Feng.” Master Emperor Chu sent a transmission. “You received the task, right?”

“Yes, Master. But how did such a great task come to me?” Luo Feng asked.

“Emperor Fu gave it to you,” Emperor Chu replied. “This time, Emperor Yan and his group tried to strip you of your guest official status... There were Emperor Yan, Emperor Xi, Emperor Wu, Emperor Yuan, and Emperor Wu—five votes in favor. If a sixth Emperor had agreed, your status would have been revoked.”

Luo Feng understood. Aside from Emperor Yan’s core team, there was Emperor Yuan? Emperor Wu?

“Emperor Fu also arranged this task for you. I’ll send you intel and a map of the ‘Heavenly Pillar Realm.’ Make good use of this opportunity.” Emperor Chu immediately transmitted the map intel.

“All right, I’ll head for the Heavenly Pillar Realm now.” After confirming with his master, Luo Feng naturally accepted the task.

The moment he accepted it was also the moment of departure.

Whoosh!

A black-robed clone of Luo Feng silently departed from Huyang City, heading toward one of the entrances to the Heavenly Pillar Realm.

There were thirty-six entrances in total. Luo Feng went to the nearest one, located in midair above a vast wilderness. With his level, he could sense a sprawling area of warped space here.

“Whoosh~~~~” Luo Feng actively flew in. As soon as he entered, endless golden light enveloped the vast region.

In the distance, he immediately saw a seated white-boned figure.

The white bones were pristine and smooth, but the eyes were normal, gazing calmly at Luo Feng.

“Divine King Luo He.” The white-boned figure rose and smiled. “My task ends now. I was wondering who’d take over—turns out it’s the newly promoted Second Stage Divine King, Luo He. It seems the ruling Emperors hold Divine King Luo He in high regard.”

Tasks like nurturing 192 Primordial Bloodline Beast Eggs were always handled by Emperor Wu, so she was the one issuing those tasks.

But guarding the Heavenly Pillar Realm—a top treasure land—was a task only ruling Emperors could issue.

“Just lucky.” Luo Feng chuckled.

“Come, let’s go pay respects to Emperor Xuan.” The white-boned figure said. “He is the one mainly responsible for guarding the Heavenly Pillar Realm. We are only here to assist.”

Luo Feng nodded. “Thank you, Divine King Baifeng.”

Divine King Baifeng, a guest official of the Ancient Flame Kingdom, was a Second Stage Divine King of the Origin Path of Life, and had a life-and-death bond with Emperor Xuan.

Whoosh!

Divine King Baifeng split off a clone to accompany Luo Feng deeper inside.

The formation at the entrance was jointly constructed by the Ancient Flame Kingdom and the Ancient Thunder Kingdom. Aside from Baifeng, another guest official from the Ancient Thunder Kingdom was stationed there—a figure with long water-blue hair.

“Heavenly Pillar.” Luo Feng noticed a towering pillar.

It was so tall that its end was not visible.

“There are thirty-six Heavenly Pillars, one at each entrance,” said Divine King Baifeng. “They support the entire Heavenly Pillar Realm. Each one holds some fortune. Later, during your guard duty, you may explore them.”

Luo Feng nodded. Being able to assign thirty-six clones for guarding meant he could split off a few more to explore the realm.

“We can only explore the outer area,” said Divine King Baifeng. “The inner region is restricted to the two Royal Clans.”

“I understand.” Luo Feng had already learned this from the intel provided by Master Emperor Chu.

The Heavenly Pillar Realm was unlike other treasure lands.

It was the most vital treasure land left behind by the Origin. The Two Ancient Kingdoms would stop at nothing to monopolize it.

“Heavenly Pillar...” Luo Feng gazed into the distance, feeling the pressure radiating from it—a pressure greater than that of a complete Origin Path.

……

Going deeper from the entrance, they passed through two formation gates and flew for quite some time before reaching the inner region of the Heavenly Pillar Realm.

The boundary of the inner region was sealed by a formation.

“Emperor.” Divine King Baifeng respectfully saluted. A figure emerged from the formation—a being exuding terrifying pressure, robed entirely in black with golden secret patterns, and cold eyes.

“Luo He greets the Emperor.” Luo Feng knew this was Emperor Xuan—former master of Emperor Guixu in his past life.

From his conversations with Emperor Guixu, Luo Feng knew that Guixu was deeply grateful to his former master.

“Royal Clan rules,” Emperor Xuan said as he looked at Luo Feng. “You are responsible for guarding the entrance. You may explore the outer region but are forbidden from entering the inner region of the Heavenly Pillar Realm.”

“Yes,” Luo Feng responded.

“During your guard, if any invaders appear, coordinate with the formation to resist them with all your might. I will arrive as swiftly as possible,” Emperor Xuan said coldly.

“Yes,” Luo Feng responded again.

“Go.” Emperor Xuan then turned and returned into the formation.

Luo Feng sighed inwardly.

Among the Emperors cultivating the Primordial Bloodline, Emperor Xuan was considered one of the more temperate—merely extremely prideful and very strict about rank. Yet it was precisely this pride that made him act with dignity.