Deep within the Changbai Mountain Range.
Huang Tianhu walked through the ancient, deep-mountain forest, a travel pack on his back.
He soon arrived at a stone pool sowhere in the mountains. He took off his clothes, placing them along with his backpack inside a hidden cave nearby, keeping only a waterproof waist pack on him.
Then, he walked to the edge of the stone pool, took a deep breath, and leaped into the frigid water.
He dove deeper and deeper. After descending about thirty ters, he spotted a small cavern at the side of the pool. It wasn’t naturally ford; it bore the marks of being carved by hand. He swam toward it and entered.
This was a secret place known only to him. Back when he had just achieved his Ascension, he had traveled all over the country searching for Spiritual Painting Pignts, and it was then that he discovered this wondrous place that could not be detected by spiritual senses.
He swam through the cavern for four to five hundred ters, a distance far beyond the limit of a normal person’s underwater swimming capabilities.
Huang Tianhu finally erged from the narrow, dark, underwater tunnel and into another, more open body of water.
He ascended nearly a hundred ters before finally breaking the surface, climbing back onto dry land inside an enormous, gloomy cavern.
The cavern was likely located deep within the mountain’s core, with no other path leading to it. An ordinary person would have no chance of reaching this place without advanced diving equipnt.
If Huang Tianhu hadn’t already attained the body of a Saint back then, and if his curiosity hadn’t been piqued by the sudden discovery of man-made marks at the bottom of the pool, prompting him to investigate, he would have never found this place.
Once ashore, he gave his body a slight shake, instantly flinging off all the water. He then took a lighter from the waterproof pack at his waist and walked along the cavern wall, lighting several oil lamps one by one.
The lampstands were all made of stone, exuding an ancient, primitive aura; they were definitely not modern creations. The oil was a yellowish-orange, giving off a strange, fragrant scent. Huang Tianhu could easily tell that it had been rendered from human bodies mixed with various special materials.
When he first found this place, he had mistakenly believed he’d stumbled upon a deeply hidden ancient tomb, but he later realized he was wrong.
With all the lamps lit, the flas illuminated the cavern. There were no coffins, no burial chambers. Three of the stone walls were covered in moss; only one showed signs of being artificially carved.
Carved into this rock face, over twenty ters tall and thirty ters wide, was an indescribably imnse object.
It was a massive door.
The carving style was incredibly archaic, filled with a primitive aura. The reliefs depicted strange beasts, upside-down mountains and rivers, sacrificial scenes, and other mysterious patterns. The carvings were also painted with so kind of pignt that had not faded despite the passage of countless years.
The firelight flickered in the cavern, making the patterns on the stone wall seem to stir. At a glance, they looked as if they had co alive, enough to make one break out in a cold sweat.
The age of the mural was impossible to verify, and Huang Tianhu couldn’t trace its true origins. He only knew that so of the beasts and patterns were likely related to Donghua’s ancient Classic of Mountains and Seas and certain forms of totem worship.
Huang Tianhu walked step by step until he stood before the mural, carefully studying the giant "door" in front of him.
He had tried before, the very first ti he arrived here. It was indeed just a mural, a sculpture, not a real door that could be pushed open.
Or perhaps, what was needed to open it was not "force," but "God."
This massive gateway was anything but simple.
When he first ca here, he didn’t understand any of this. After pushing open the "door," he had nearly died in this unknown place.
"This ti, I’m going to stay here until I’ve completely conquered you."
Huang Tianhu muttered to himself.
In the battle of Modu, he had been defeated by Yuri. His opponent’s "Blood of the Earth" had completely suppressed his "Blood of Ten Thousand Spirits," using brute force to shatter all of his defenses.
Next ti, he had to avenge this humiliation.
「Across the ocean.」
"Devi! You must take responsibility for the operation in Donghua! It was because of your actions that our entire plan ended in complete failure! You should know that your actions are tantamount to treason! You must give us an explanation!"
"We are suspending all of your resource provisions until you give us a satisfactory answer!"
"..."
In a conference room on Congress Hill, a group of influential figures from the Starry Sky Country sat in the head seats, surrounding a young man who was seated casually. The scene looked very much like a formal interrogation.
"Are you done? If you’re done, I’m leaving."
Devi cleaned his ear. After waiting for the group to ramble on for a good while, he slowly stood up, a completely unconcerned look on his face.
"Watch your attitude, Devi Punk!"
An old man in the lead seat rapped his cane on the floor and said in a low voice.
"Alright, don’t try to pull rank on . By the way, I should inform you of sothing in advance. Soon, a private rocket might launch from within the Starry Sky Country without permission. You can try to shoot it down. That shouldn’t be too difficult for you."
"But before you do, you’d better be sure whether I’m on that rocket... or rather, which rocket I’m on."
Devi didn’t linger and headed for the door.
He wasn’t about to listen to these old geezers and their bluffs.
Until they found soone who could replace him and utterly defeat him, no one could shake his position in the Starry Sky Country.
He wasn’t one of those politicians who needed to run around rallying support and currying favor to trade for power.
The power of the Saint Realm ca from within him; no one could take it away.
This was the ultimate foundation of his ability to do as he pleased.
"Oh, right. Since you want to emulate Donghua and launch your own similar plan, you’d better change your way of thinking."
"Otherwise, I won’t even have to lift a finger. Soone else will replace the heads sitting in these seats for you, gentlen."
Devi’s voice echoed in the conference room, and then he vanished before everyone’s eyes.
Soon, he would challenge his own limits and beco the first person on this planet to break free from his "swaddling clothes." When that ti ca, nothing would be able to restrain him, and he would once again seek out the opponent who had given him a taste of defeat.
And he would conquer the many ancient histories and legends hidden amongst humanity.
「In the middle of the ocean.」
A submarine hovered motionlessly in the deep, dark water.
A thousand ters below the surface, sunlight could no longer penetrate. Without lights, the surroundings were an oppressive, boundless darkness that inspired an unspeakable terror.
A tall figure stood at the pressurized airlock, waiting for the outer hatch to open.
Normally, only deep-sea probes were released from here. But at this mont, the one about to exit was a human being, completely without any protective gear.
’Let see my limits, and the limits of humanity. In this boundless fear and darkness, I will glimpse the true aning of life and complete another evolution,’ Ulysses thought.
Starry Sky Country, Valu Island.
Kinala Volcano.
"My connection to the earth... it’s still not close enough."
Yuri stood at the edge of the volcanic crater, looking down at the churning lava below, a strangely crazed glint in his eyes.
"Perhaps... I should find a way to completely ’rge’ with the earth."
「Sowhere in Western Europe.」
Moncalis was shrouded in a golden Sacred Mark, like a living Deity.
He was mastering the Radiant Sacred Mark state—which he had comprehended under pressure from Yi Beidou—at a speed that surpassed his own imagination.
Feeling the imnse and terrifying power within his body, Moncalis’s eyes showed no hint of joy, only utter calm.
The images of those two n dueling flashed through his mind.
He especially couldn’t forget the image and power of the one who had defeated him.
"It’s far from enough. I need to comprehend an even greater power."
Moncalis muttered to himself as a plan began to form in his mind.
The new generation of powerhouses who participated in the battle of Modu all threw themselves into a new round of Cultivation.
This grand event not only inspired the many Martial Artists and citizens of Donghua but also deeply spurred on these powerhouses, subtly changing the world.
Having co this far, who among them would be willing to be a re foil, a background star?
They wanted to challenge their limits, defeat their powerful rivals, and shine even more brilliantly in this great new era.
「anwhile.」
Modu, a suburban manor.
Yi Beidou, however, had yet to make any move. He spent his days in quiet ditation, never going out and cutting off all social contact.
"Don’t you think sothing seems a little off about him lately?"
Yang Mutong whispered to Zhou Baiwei, who was beside her, as she watched Yi Beidou in the manor "teaching" a few kittens how to box.
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