Chai Feng’s face darkened slightly.

  He had lost—and lost to three Five Phoenix competitors, finishing dead last.

  Of course, this was partly because Chai Feng hadn’t gone all out. Compared to Nie Changqing and Jing Yue, he hadn’t thought to use Gold Origin mysteries to carve a path forward—a habit left over from his previous comprehension sessions.

  But Nie Changqing and Jing Yue’s approach had opened a new path for him. He could try it next time.

  With that thought, Chai Feng laughed heartily.

  A loss was a loss. Mystery comprehension wasn’t his strong suit anyway.

  If humanity could gain so many prodigies talented in mystery comprehension, Chai Feng wouldn’t mind losing a few more times.

  “Not bad.”

  Chai Feng sighed in admiration.

  “Young Master Lu, I’ll honor the bet. Thirty emperor-realm cultivators? It’ll take some time, but I can manage.”

  Chai Feng laughed freely.

  He felt no resentment or dissatisfaction from the loss.

  Instead, he felt rather pleased.

  Chai Feng’s attitude surprised Lu slightly.

  He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly—the other’s magnanimity was truly on par with his own, Lu Ping’an.

  Jing Yue had fainted from the overwhelming pressure. After all, he had endured a force far beyond his current cultivation.

  “That sword was stunning.”

  Chai Feng said. “If possible, I can help Brother Jing quickly reach emperor-realm.”

  Lu glanced at Chai Feng. “Tell him when he wakes.”

  “As for the bet, no rush. There’s no time limit. Just cultivate thirty emperor-realm cultivators when you can…”

  Lu smiled.

  Thirty emperor-realm cultivators—was that a lot?

  For the Five Phoenix Continent, it wasn’t trivial. There weren’t even thirty emperor-realm cultivators in the Five Phoenix yet.

  But for Chai Feng, who was used to seeing emperor-realm powerhouses, cultivating them wasn’t difficult—just time-consuming.

  After all, initial-stage emperors still counted.

  Finding talented cultivators and guiding them properly made reaching initial emperor-realm feasible.

  Moreover, Chai Feng had seen the Five Phoenix cultivators’ talent through Nie Changqing and Jing Yue—it wasn’t simple.

  This made Chai Feng realize: the Five Phoenix had grown from weak low-martial to immortal-martial. Such world advancement meant repeated talent evolution for its cultivators.

  The world’s transformation influenced talent transformation.

  Why did Primordial Immortal Domain value new immortal-martial worlds so highly?

  Why did god-demons constantly suppress humanity’s new immortal-martial worlds?

  Because such worlds easily birthed prodigies with extraordinary talent.

  Unlike those who started at a high level in Primordial Immortal Domain,

  these cultivators grew alongside their world.

  Figures like Ancient Emperor Hao and Lu Jiulian were astonishing to Chai Feng.

  And Lu—someone valued by a mysterious starry saint—his talent needed no further explanation.

  Lu revived the unconscious Jing Yue.

  Jing Yue’s cultivation had also broken through. He had essentially shattered his bottleneck and could now enter Golden Immortal realm. He only lacked fortune accumulation.

  “You already possess Golden Immortal-level consciousness. You just need more accumulation. Go to the Fortune Tower and complete some god-demon missions to build fortune while tempering your strength.”

  Lu smiled at Jing Yue.

  “You did well this time. Young Master has high hopes for you.”

  Jing Yue’s eyes lit up the moment he woke. He was deeply moved—Young Master… still favored him most!

  How long had it been since he heard those words?

  Hearing Young Master’s praise excited Jing Yue more than breaking through to Golden Immortal.

  Chai Feng looked at Jing Yue.

  “Brother Jing, you’ve comprehended Gold Origin mysteries. It will greatly enhance your sword path… I have the sword technique inheritance of a perfected Heavenly Emperor powerhouse. My talent is limited, but it might suit you perfectly.”

  “That Heavenly Emperor fell in battle against god-demons. His sword once nearly severed a heaven-god rank god-demon! It shocked the starry void… unfortunately, he fell just short.”

  “I’ve been searching for a worthy successor. If Brother Jing inherits this senior’s mantle, his spirit can rest in peace.”

  Chai Feng said.

  “When you have time, I’ll teach you the technique.”

  Chai Feng smiled.

  Jing Yue’s eyes lit up. He quickly bowed in thanks.

  The surrounding Five Phoenix Golden Immortals’ eyes also brightened. They looked at Chai Feng like he was a treasure.

  Chai Feng suddenly felt a chill, as though eyed by a pack of hungry wolves.

  Though awkward, Chai Feng didn’t mind.

  Or rather, this was the effect he wanted.

  Losing the competition could affect Five Phoenix cultivators’ impression of Primordial Immortal Domain. By offering these inheritances, he salvaged some respect.

  Lu smiled, very satisfied with the outcome.

  But Chai Feng truly lived up to his Heavenly Emperor-level status—his magnanimity was impeccable.

  Just as Lu was admiring Chai Feng—

  A system prompt suddenly appeared before him, leaving Lu stunned.

  “Congratulations, Host. Challenge mission completed. Completion rating: Excellent.”

  “Reward: Chance to randomly draw one of Tonggu’s divine abilities. Begin drawing now?”

  The system prompted.

  Lu’s eyebrow twitched.

  He looked at Chai Feng with newfound fondness.

  He hadn’t expected winning against Chai Feng alone would complete the challenge mission. He thought he’d have to wait for Tonggu to bring the ancestral land prodigies for a unified competition.

  This saved him a lot of time.

  “Tonggu is a quasi-saint-level human powerhouse. His divine abilities… must be extraordinary.”

  Lu drew a deep breath and prepared to draw.

  But he paused.

  He narrowed his eyes.

  This was random. What if his luck was bad and he drew Tonggu’s shameless divine ability? That would be disastrous.

  So Lu decided to wash his hands thoroughly before drawing.

  Wash away the bad luck.

  Hum…

  After a few words with Chai Feng, Lu vanished through space.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  He returned to Lakeheart Island.

  He called Ni Yu and borrowed her golden cauldron.

  Ni Yu froze, confused. Young Master wanted to borrow her pot?

  But she didn’t dare refuse.

  Of course, she was curious too.

  Lu took the cauldron and personally refined a batch of pills—not precious ones, but pills infused with fortune.

  The cauldron was full. The yield was massive.

  The sheer volume made Ni Yu’s chubby cheeks tremble with envy.

  Then Lu rolled up his sleeves.

  He plunged both hands into the cauldron full of pills and scrubbed carefully.

  He cleaned every finger crease meticulously.

  This bizarre ritual nearly made Ni Yu spit out the pills she’d eaten yesterday. Young Master… as unfathomable as ever.

  Washing hands with pills to dispel bad luck, Lu was satisfied and ready to draw.

  “Begin drawing.”

  Lu said calmly.

  Then the system prompt appeared.

  “Drawing begins. Note: Random draw. There is a 10% chance of failure…”

  Lu’s expression remained unchanged.

  He felt the atmosphere grow tense, as though streams of light were flashing before him.

  After a moment—what felt like an eternity to Lu—

  Just when he thought he’d see “Thank you for participating,” the system prompt finally appeared.

  “Congratulations, Host. Successfully drawn: Tonggu’s divine ability—Spatial Severing Technique.”

  Hm?

  Lu’s eyes lit up.

  Spatial Severing Technique?

  The name alone sounded extraordinary.

  Severing space?

  Space was profoundly mysterious. Though Lu had grasped some spatial mysteries through Ancient Emperor Hao’s “Travel” array word,

  his understanding was still superficial.

  Spatial mysteries were vast and deep.

  Lu closed his eyes. A flood of profound information surged into his mind—a strange sensation.

  His grasp of spatial mysteries deepened. His understanding became uniquely his own.

  In his mind, all information about Spatial Severing Technique converged and transformed into Lu’s knowledge.

  “Truly powerful…”

  Lu opened his eyes.

  As expected of a quasi-saint’s divine ability—its offensive power was terrifying.

  “If I combine Spatial Severing Technique with Gold Origin mysteries and my Spirit Pressure Chessboard… it could become an exceptional killing move. Even without the Indestructible Body, I’d have cross-rank combat power.”

  Lu’s eyes gleamed.

  Indeed, washing hands with a massive batch of pills before drawing had greatly boosted his luck.

  Of course, Lu’s mastery of Spatial Severing Technique was still shallow. He needed time to practice.

  But at least this ability satisfied him greatly.

  His luck this time was excellent.

  …

  Rumble rumble!

  In the ancient starry void, space folded endlessly.

  Tonggu stepped forward, compressing space around him.

  Along the way, he casually found excuses to slaughter a few peeping god-demons. He felt refreshed.

  He had no mercy for god-demons. Their blockade of humanity had caused countless deaths and destroyed many worlds on the verge of immortal-martial ascension.

  So killing god-demons, Tonggu felt no hesitation.

  Suddenly.

  Tonggu’s rushing body trembled.

  He paused. Space exploded.

  His body crashed into the void, face full of confusion.

  He raised his hand and clutched his chest.

  After a long moment, he exhaled.

  “Oh~”

  Why did he suddenly feel… hollowed out?

  Tonggu was puzzled. He didn’t know what had happened to him.

  Why this sudden sensation of being hollowed out? As a quasi-saint, such emotions were extremely rare…

  Moreover, with his quasi-saint body, how could he feel hollowed out?

  Illogical.

  But Tonggu’s eyes rolled.

  Then he turned and slowly reached toward a spot in the starry void.

  That space instantly twisted, sliced into neat cubes by an invisible blade.

  Puff!

  Blood sprayed.

  The terrifyingly powerful god-demon who had been tailing him tumbled out from the sliced space.

  “Tonggu, you’re courting death!”

  “This time, what excuse do you have?! Attacking us god-demons for no reason—does the human ancestral land want war?”

  The powerful god-demon’s eyes blazed red as he roared.

  Tonggu clutched his chest, eyes filled with grief and indignation.

  “You stole this old daoist’s heart! Only you and I were here. This old daoist suddenly felt hollowed out—it must be your doing!”

  Tonggu said.

  The god-demon froze. Then he nearly exploded with curses.

  Damn it, you shameless bastard!

  Who would want to steal an old fart’s heart!

  The god-demon didn’t linger. He turned and fled. Tonggu’s shamelessness had truly frightened him.

  Tonggu sneered.

  Having scared the other away, he didn’t stay.

  The hollowed-out feeling came quickly and left quickly. Soon, Tonggu continued on his way.

  Humanity possessing a Beast Ancestor statue was immensely important.

  If used properly, it could cultivate countless Heavenly Emperor-level powerhouses for humanity.

  But he had to be careful. If the news leaked, the Elemental Gods would never let it go.

  …

  The pyramid housing the Beast Ancestor statue wasn’t sealed after the competition.

  Lu planned to open it soon, allowing Five Phoenix Golden Immortals to comprehend mysteries.

  “But Jing Yue and Nie Changqing are the most suited for Gold Origin mysteries. Others might struggle to comprehend, or even catch up to Chai Feng.”

  Lu pondered.

  “Even a little comprehension is better than none.”

  Comprehending mysteries meant mastering them.

  Like Chai Feng, who had mastered about twenty percent. It still boosted his combat power considerably.

  Nie Changqing and Jing Yue might master more, but likely not beyond twenty percent. After all, this was their first time. Chai Feng had prior experience in the god-demons’ comprehension ground.

  Of course, as they climbed the pyramid and were influenced by the Beast Ancestor statue, their mastery would deepen.

  But mastery was limited by talent.

  Ordinary people might spend their entire lives mastering only one or two percent.

  Those with talent like Jing Yue and Nie Changqing might one day reach over fifty percent.

  “There are five Beast Ancestor statues in total. I wonder where the others are…”

  “If I could bring them all to the Five Phoenix and let the cultivators master mysteries… the Five Phoenix’s strength would skyrocket.”

  “The stronger Five Phoenix cultivators become, the stronger I, Lu Ping’an, become…”

  “Looks like I need to find a way to get the other statues. This concerns my lifelong happiness.”

  Lu muttered.

  Chai Feng and the Five Phoenix Golden Immortals returned to the Five Phoenix Continent.

  Chai Feng also passed on the perfected Heavenly Emperor’s sword technique to Jing Yue.

  “Accumulation Sword Technique!”

  Jing Yue’s eyes lit up when he saw it.

  This technique perfectly matched his current sword path and sword intent.

  One sword nurtured for a thousand years. Once unleashed, it could cleave the heavens, earth, sun, moon, and stars.

  This Accumulation Sword Technique perfected Jing Yue’s sword path even further.

  After learning it, Jing Yue entered the Fortune Tower and chose a heavenly-grade Profound Immortal mission.

  Heavenly-grade Profound Immortal missions were extremely difficult.

  Even for Jing Yue, who was already at peak Profound Immortal, it nearly cost him his life.

  Finally, he fused his nurtured sword into one strike and slew an initial-rank god-demon. Fortune poured in, forming a sea!

  In one thought, he entered Golden Immortal realm.

  The Golden Immortal tribulation arrived, but Jing Yue passed it safely.

  The Five Phoenix gained another Golden Immortal—a joyous occasion.

  Chai Feng settled in the Five Phoenix Continent. He was quite satisfied with the cultivation environment—everyone was positive and full of vitality.

  Since he had lost the bet, Chai Feng had to cultivate thirty emperor-realm cultivators for the Five Phoenix.

  Cultivating ordinary initial emperors was easy for him—just took time.

  But since he was cultivating, Chai Feng naturally wanted to select talented ones.

  So he planned to venture into the Five Phoenix Continent and search for disciples.

  With his Heavenly Emperor-level strength, establishing a sect was perfectly acceptable.

  But before he could begin, Lu called him over.

  “Brother Chai, I heard there are five Beast Ancestor statues in the ancient starry void?”

  “Now that the Gold Origin statue is in the Five Phoenix, where are the other four?”

  Lu asked curiously.

  Chai Feng paused but didn’t hide it. He knew this information well.

  “I don’t know their exact locations, but the Gold Origin Beast Ancestor statue was originally in the Gold Elemental Realm—Young Master Lu should know that.”

  “The Fire Origin statue is likely in the Fire Elemental Realm.”

  “The Water Origin statue is in the Water Elemental Realm. The Earth Origin statue should be in the Earth Elemental Realm.”

  Chai Feng said.

  “What about the Wood Origin statue?”

  Lu asked curiously.

  “Why isn’t it in the Wood Elemental Realm?”

  Chai Feng smiled. “It was originally in the Wood Elemental Realm… but later, the Wood Elemental Realm was attacked by an extremely terrifying chaos creature—comparable to a heaven-god rank god-demon. Even the five Elemental Gods together couldn’t defeat it… so the Wood Origin statue was taken.”

  “It became a laughingstock in the ancient starry void for a while.”

  “But that chaos creature’s power is undeniable. According to Senior Tonggu, it may have half a foot in the Beast Ancestor realm!”

  Chai Feng’s words made Lu draw a deep breath.

  This seemed… quite troublesome.

  Taking the other statues wouldn’t be easy.

  And if he succeeded, it would surely enrage the Elemental Gods. The Five Phoenix would face a god-demon siege…

  Possibly even provoking that chaos creature half a step into Beast Ancestor realm—far worse.

  Lu sighed.

  The path to the Five Phoenix’s rise was long and arduous.

  Having learned what he needed, Chai Feng bid Lu farewell and left Lakeheart Island. He drifted into the Five Phoenix Continent to search for talents and cultivate emperor-realm cultivators.

  Lu sat in Lakeheart Island, feeling somewhat relaxed.

  He had captured quite a few immortal-rank god-demons earlier. The Fortune Tower’s strategic reserves were still sufficient.

  So Lu wasn’t in a hurry to lure more god-demons.

  Lu looked up.

  A resounding phoenix cry echoed.

  The Five Phoenix immortal source—the phoenix that had just hatched—was flapping its wings freely.

  It circled the golden star.

  What surprised Lu was that golden threads drifted from the adorable little Beast Ancestor statue on the star.

  They wrapped around the phoenix.

  Gradually dyeing the immortal source phoenix with golden light.

  Lu frowned. He wasn’t sure if the Gold Origin mysteries’ influence would harm the immortal source phoenix.

  But he sensed no negative effects for now… so it should be fine.

  Watching the silly, carefree phoenix soaring and flapping its wings, Lu felt a headache coming on.

  “Is the Five Phoenix immortal source’s transformation mostly due to Little Yinglong’s Dao essence absorption? Could Little Yinglong’s silliness have affected the immortal source?”

  Lu’s face darkened.

  Thinking about it made him angry.

  He reached out casually.

  His understanding of space had deepened significantly.

  With a grab, he directly seized Little Yinglong and smacked him a few times.

  Little Yinglong was dumbfounded. His mouth was still stuffed with Ni Yu’s pills—he hadn’t even swallowed.

  A sudden disaster!

  Why was Father hitting him for no reason?

  He’d been very good lately!

  After a few smacks, Lu’s anger subsided. The immortal source phoenix had already become like this—what could he do?

  He couldn’t remake it from scratch.

  Lu sighed.

  For the Five Phoenix, he had truly broken his heart.

  He stopped worrying about it. If the immortal source phoenix wanted to play with the adorable little Beast Ancestor statue, let it play.

  As long as no major problems arose.

  Lu sat cross-legged and began considering his own strength improvement.

  Through the Gold Origin statue, he could comprehend mysteries too. Currently, he had mastered about fifty to sixty percent of Gold Origin mysteries. He wasn’t in a rush—with the statue in hand, full mastery was only a matter of time.

  Ten percent mastery of Gold Origin mysteries combined with the Indestructible Golden Body—his combat power would probably explode!

  But the Indestructible Fire Body also needed strengthening.

  With that thought, Lu’s mind stirred.

  He raised his hand.

  Boom!

  A cluster of blazing flames appeared.

  This was the pure fire origin power left after Qiang Huo’s death.

  The flames held strong attraction for the Indestructible Fire Body—otherwise, Lu wouldn’t have taken it from Tonggu.

  Though it was his spoil of war, if Lu hadn’t claimed it, he had no doubt that shameless Tonggu would have pocketed it without hesitation.

  Lu’s mind moved.

  His hair turned crimson. His white robes transformed into fiery red robes.

  Threads of attraction surged from the Indestructible Fire Body.

  Slowly absorbing the dancing flames.

  …

  In a vast sea of fire.

  A terrifying existence suddenly opened its eyes.

  “Tonggu, that old thing, has finally started absorbing…”

  Cold words echoed. Then, overwhelming divine soul fluctuations erupted, shaking the heavens.

  …

  Boom!

  A wisp of nearly imperceptible will trembled within the flames Lu was absorbing and refining into his Indestructible Fire Body.

  Lu’s eyes snapped open.

  Something messy had slipped in!