Most people knew Dugu Wen and Dugu Wu were brothers. They had grown together when they were still a Hundred Colors Flower and a Tenacious Heavenly Bamboo respectively. Their bond was incredibly strong.
Dugu Wuâs Celestial Origin Energy erupted from his body as he rushed to the battle site with all his might. Alas, when he arrived, he only saw the place was in ruins. There was no one around. Even after extending his Divine Consciousness in all directions, he did not discover anyoneâs presence at all.
âDuan Ling Tian!â Dugu Wu said through gritted teeth as an unsightly expression appeared on his wizened face. His long white hair fluttered in the air like venomous snakes despite there being no wind.
âBrother, Iâll definitely avenge you!â Hatred flashed in the depths of Dugu Wuâs eyes. At the same time, he was also filled with wariness. How could Duan Ling Tian, a mere Celestial Lord, have so many tricks up his sleeve? Was Duan Ling Tian even human?
âIf Brother Wenâs judgment is right, then Duan Ling Tianâs devata artifact has to be a top-tier one even in the Realms of Gods. Otherwise, how could he possess such formidable powers?â Dugu Wu muttered to himself as greed flashed in his eyes.
Moments before his death, Dugu Wen finally realized that he had been wrong to assume Duan Ling Tianâs strength came solely from the Seven Orifices Exquisite Sword. At that time, he had finally realized the manifestation of the Pine Willow Divine Tree from the Godly Image Phenomenon was not only strong because of the Seven Orifices Sword, but it was mostly due to the Five Divine Elements. Alas, since he only discovered this right before his death, he did not have time to divulge this piece of information to Dugu Wu.
For this reason, Dugu Wu also assumed Duan Ling Tianâs strength came solely from the Seven Orifices Exquisite Sword and did not think highly of Duan Ling Tian even though Duan Ling Tian had killed Dugu Wen. Moreover, his strength was superior to Dugu Wenâs strength. If he fought with Dugu Wen, he could kill Dugu Wen faster than Dugu Wen could have killed Duan Ling Tian if Dugu Wen was not careless.
âDuan Ling Tian must be on his way back to the Heavenly Pool Palace after leaving this palace. Iâll make my way to the Heavenly Pool Palace as well to see if I can intercept him.â
...
After leaving, Duan Ling Tian used a different route to return to the Heavenly Pool Palace, therefore, he successfully avoided Dugu Wu.
âThe Supreme Powerhouse Divinity can help me learn how to fuse my profundities from the law of space, but Iâve yet to grasp how it works. Moreover, it seems to be related to my cultivation base,â Duan Ling Tian muttered to himself. He recalled when he was still a Celestial Duke, he could not progress in his comprehension of the law of space due to his cultivation even with the help from the Supreme Powerhouse Divinity. It was only when he had a breakthrough and became a Celestial Lord that he managed to comprehend the profundities from the law of space to the mastery stage from the initial stage.
âBased on my experience, it seems likely that Iâll only be able to fuse my profundities once I have a breakthrough and become a Celestial Emperor. What do you think, Sister Water?â Duan Ling Tian asked for the World Cleansing Divine Waterâs opinion.
âThat should be the case,â the World Cleansing Divine Water replied, âAt the very least, Iâve not met anyone who had successfully fused their profundities before becoming a Celestial Emperor. Perhaps, this is a restriction set by the heavens... After this, you should temporarily stop focusing on the law of space and concentrate on raising your cultivation base instead.â
Duan Ling Tian nodded in response. Although he had a breakthrough when he was in the Jade Emperor Heaven, he was just a Five Elements Celestial Lord. There was still a long way to go before he became a Celestial Emperor.
âI should try my best to raise my cultivation base using any means possible once I return to the Heavenly Pool Palace so I can learn how to fuse my profundities. Dugu Wenâs strength increased tremendously after only fusing three profundities... Based on this, one can see how powerful fused profundities were...â After witnessing Dugu Wenâs strength, Duan Ling Tian was obsessed with fusing his profundities.
...
Xu Lang arrived at the Heavenly Pool Palaceâs estate in just a short time.
On the other hand, Duan Ling Tian who was chased by Dugu Wen to a distant place and had to use a longer route to avoid Dugu Wu only arrived after three months. Before arriving, he had sent a message to Xu Lang, requesting Xu Lang to wait for him at the entrance. When he arrived, he saw that Xu Lang did not come alone; Lei Ying, the Merciless Celestial Emperor, was there as well.
Under normal circumstances, Lei Ying would not have agreed to Xu Langâs request. However, due to Huanâerâs relationship with Duan Ling Tian, Lei Ying easily agreed to Xu Langâs request. After all, at this time, Huanâer was as important to her as her son, Lei Jun. As a Thousand Phantoms Ice Fox, one of the Divine Beasts, Huanâerâs future was limitless. Therefore, she knew it was important for her to establish a good relationship with Huanâer.
âThank you, Pavilion Master Lei.â After entering the Heavenly Pool Palaceâs estate, Duan Ling Tian thanked Lei Ying before he parted ways with her.
Lei Yin replied amiably with a faint smile on her face, âThereâs no need to thank me. When youâre free, just bring Huanâer with you to my cultivation place. My cultivation place isnât inferior to Xu Langâs cultivation place...â
âAlright,â Duan Ling Tian replied.
After Lei Ying left, Duan Ling Tian followed Xu Lang back to Xu Langâs cultivation place. As soon as he arrived in the main hall, he discovered not only was Huanâer waiting for him, but his senior brothers and senior sisters were present as well. Even Lu Ji, his Second Senior Brother who rarely made an appearance, was present.
âBrother Ling Tian!â Although Huanâer had already news that Duan Ling Tian was safe, she still could not help herself from running into his arms as soon as she saw him.
When Duan Ling Tian held her tightly in his arms, he could feel her rapid heartbeat. He patted her gently on the back and said, âSilly girl, Iâm fine.â
When Duan Ling Tian released Huanâer from his embrace, he suddenly discovered everyone was watching them, causing him to feel embarrassed.
At this moment, Xu Lang solemnly said, âBefore you arrived, I asked them to help me investigate this matter. Someone saw Han Yun Jin and Lei Yingâs son, Lei Jun, together recently. If theyâre working together, itâs possible that theyâre able to pool their resources and hire Dugu Wen and Duge Wu.â
Xu Lang, naturally, did not stay idle after returning to the Heavenly Pool Palaceâs estate. He had sent his prodigious disciples to investigate this matter.
âLei Jun?â Duan Ling Tian frowned as he instinctively turned to look at Huanâer.
Lei Jun was Lei Yingâs only son and her second disciple. He was also Huanâer Second Senior Brother.
âThatâs right.â Xu Lang nodded.
At this moment, Hu Mei chimed in, âLittle Junior Brother, Lei Jun and Han Yun Jin rarely interact before this. In fact, theyâre rarely seen together. Itâs strange that they were seen together when we were in the Title Temple. A few people saw them meeting secretly. We wouldnât have found out about this if we didnât thoroughly investigate the matter...â
âThey were rarely, if ever, seen together?â Duan Ling Tian nodded. Indeed, this matter was highly suspicious. However, from what he knew, he had no conflicts with Lei Jun. He said, âThere isnât any conflict between Lei Jun and me. I donât understand why heâd work with Han Yun Jin to kill me? Moreover, heâs even willing to pay such a high price...â
At this moment, Hong Fei, Duan Ling Tianâs Sixth Senior Brother, spoke up. He narrowed his eyes as he said, âWhat you said right. However, sometimes, you donât have to have conflicts with someone for them to want to kill you. There are many things that can motivate a person to kill someone. For example, I might be motivated to kill you because Iâm jealous of your handsome appearance. This is a normal motivation for women to kill...â
Duan Ling Tian asked, âSixt Senior Brother, what are you trying to say?â
Hong Fei looked at Wen Wanâer before he said, âBefore you return, Fourth Senior Sister and Huanâer went to the Merciless Celestial Emperorâs cultivation place a few times, and they met Lei Jun twice. According to Fourth Senior Sister, although Lei Jun tried to conceal it, she could tell Lei Jun is fond of Huanâer. Do you understand what Iâm trying to say now?â After he finished speaking, his eyes glinted coldly.
âIs that so?â Duan Ling Tian narrowed his eyes that shone with killing intent. If Lei Jun liked Huanâer, he would have a motive of trying to kill him. After all, everyone could see how close Huanâer was to him; it was as though she could not live without him. It was only natural that Lei Jun wanted to get rid of Duan Ling Tian if he had designs on Huanâer. Although he was not like Lei Jun, he understood what some men were like.