Hong Zhencheng was extremely surprised by Ye Yuâs proposal. In his eyes, Ye Yu was a being of unparalleled powerâat the very least he was at the threshold of the Ancient God Peak. A High God like that ought to be roaming the Celestial Realm, chasing ever higher realms. Why, then, had he suddenly decided to join the Wuliangdian Divine Alliance?
Although there were Ancient Godâlevel figures in the alliance, Hong Zhencheng felt something was off. It was as if a voice echoed in his heart: Ye Yu shouldnât be looking at a second-rate alliance like theirs. If he wanted alliance connections, he ought to join something like Jiyuege, the premier Divine Alliance! And on top of that, heâd announced he was âstarting from zero,â joining with only New Godârealm cultivation! Hong Zhencheng simply couldnât understand such behavior.
Yet under Ye Yuâs repeated insistence, he relented. Wuliangdian was a casual, free-wheeling alliance, and membership required only a recommendation. Hong Zhencheng could serve as Ye Yuâs sponsor. Everything went smoothly. Ye Yu obtained his Wuliangdian Divine Alliance credentials, along with a handbook and a
Communication Stone
. The first page of the manual stated the core principle of the alliance: if youâre not convinced, fight! The following sections explained the output formats for various languages and the protocols for requesting assistance within the alliance.
The
Communication Stone
issued was exclusively for summoning reinforcements. Each helper was required to pay twenty Divine Stonesâthat was the rule. No amount of personal favor could waive the fee. Charging for service was the eternal rule, and also the binding agreement. Ye Yu couldnât help but laugh when he read all these regulations. He hadnât expected a Divine Alliance to have so many formalities.
Of course, Ye Yu hadnât joined Wuliangdian simply to dispense justice. His sole goal from the start was to deal with Old GeâGe Laoâthe veteran of the Divine Realm! When extinguishing those demons trapped by the Impermanence Soul-Lock Bell, Ge Lao himself had said that those imps were hidden so perfectly that even Ancient Godârealm experts wouldnât notice them without careful inspection. Yet that old fellow had merely glanced at them and uncovered their secret. That alone proved his cultivation was extraordinarily profound.
Ye Yuâs cultivation, it turned out, was nothing but show. But Ge Laoâs cultivation really was formidable! Therefore, Ye Yu decided to remain in Wuliangdian for a while. First, to lie low and evade Wu Qianâs attention. Second, to see if he could extract some artifact secrets from Ge Lao. Not necessarily a lifesaving divine treasureâat the very least he wanted to learn more about divine artifacts. He didnât want to repeat the last time, when heâd been ambushed and had no idea what hit him.
So every few days Ye Yu went to chat with Ge Lao. He even spent a fortune on premium tea leaves, brewing tea for the two of them. Through these meetings, their relationship grew more familiar. Only one thing remained awkward: whenever Ge Lao spoke to him, he never looked Ye Yu in the eye. Ye Yu really wanted to ask: âYouâre both gods nowâcanât you just stop giving me the side-eye?â But that question was too risky, so he never dared utter it.
Seeing Ye Yu hesitate, Ge Lao abruptly tossed him a book. âKid, youâve been hanging around all this time just for this thing. Why so coy?â Ye Yu opened the cover and saw six big characters:
Divine Realm Artifact Compendium
. âNice nameâtruly the beauty of simplicity,â he thought. A smaller line on the cover read: âCompiled up to Year Nine of the Divine Calendar, Month Seven, Day Thirty-Eight Million.â What did that mean?
Ge Lao explained calmly, âIn the Divine Realm, geniuses aboundâmany have mastered the forging arts. Divine artifacts are constantly evolving. This Compendium hasnât been updated in over eight hundred years, but if you read it cover to cover, youâll understand over ninety percent of the artifacts in the realm. You wonât have to worry about anyone sneaking surprises on you again.â
âDonât think youâve been loitering here just for this book,â Ge Lao added with a grin. Ye Yu felt a surge of surpriseâhe hadnât expected Ge Lao to see through him so thoroughly. Before Ye Yu could speak, Ge Lao raised his hand again. âSave the thanks. I just find your temper agreeable, so I gave it to you outright. If itâd been that fool Hong Zhencheng, Iâd have dangled it for another year or two. Now youâve got itâcome by for tea any time. Donât vanish after you get what you want!â
Ye Yu cupped his fists and replied, âRest assured, Old Ge, our tea sessions will continue daily. You once told me that gods, like humans, have boundless greed. I find that very true.â Now that he had the Compendium, he thought, he should plan how to pry a divine artifact or two out of Ge Laoâs hands in the future.
Ge Lao straightened up and laughed, pointing °⢠N đ v đ l i g h t â˘Â° at Ye Yu, âAll right, kidâyouâre frank. You really arenât afraid Iâll think you greedy!â
Ye Yu chuckled, about to reply, when the
Communication Stone
in his hand suddenly glowed red. A strangerâs voice rang out from it:
âI, Nangong Yantian, request assistance punches from all deities still in the alliance. Those who receive this message, assemble at the entrance. It is extremely urgent; please do not delay!â
Ye Yu stared at the stone, intrigued. So this was how they summoned reinforcementsâquite interesting. Ge Lao said gravely, âThat kid Nangong Yantian has probably pissed off another alliance again. Otherwise, heâd never call for backup. Want to go see? It could be dangerous for someone of your cultivation!â
âOf course Iâm going,â Ye Yu said eagerly. âWuliangdianâs tradition is: if youâre not convinced, fight!â With that, he transformed into a streak of light and sped off. Time must not be wastedâeven dream time! His active skill One Breath Golden Body had just cooled down; he intended to seize the chance to start reaping subservience points.