Chapter 1124: The Divine Palace of the Realm Core

The world was a swirling chaos.

When Dongbo Xueying descended upon the land, all things had yet to be born. Only surging energy roiled and scattered—thunderbolts cracked, tempests howled, tidal waves towered, and volcanoes erupted. Amidst this primordial tumult, Dongbo Xueying, clad in black robes, sat cross-legged atop a solitary peak. His vast consciousness, that of a Cosmic God, enveloped the entire world, meticulously sensing its violent, ceaseless transformations.

A thousand years later, the heavens and earth took form, and the world stabilized.

Grass, trees, fish, and insects emerged, followed by all manner of beasts. Then came humans, their bodies covered in thick fur, still savage in nature.

“Roar.”

“Roar.”

A hunting party of wild men discovered the black-robed figure sitting motionless on the mountain peak. Around him, strange phenomena flickered—behind him loomed an endless, boundless world, while the space nearby fractured, split, or was sliced apart… yet all confined within a hundred-meter radius. The wild men spoke in crude tongues, cautiously approaching this being whose smooth, furless skin resembled their own. They were curious.

But when they neared within a hundred meters, an invisible barrier halted them.

The wild men exchanged glances, then let out low growls before kneeling and kowtowing repeatedly.

Thus…

A nearby tribe adopted a totem—a black-robed man seated in meditation.

—

Dongbo Xueying spent his days immersed in the evolution of the void. His mountain peak was veiled in an illusionary array, allowing only the rare fortunate soul to approach him once every century. The phenomena he manifested during his cultivation could, if one possessed sufficient insight, reveal profound mysteries. Xueying sought to test whether this world, devoid of transcendents, could truly never birth one.

A youth, guided by fate, breached the array and glimpsed Xueying, comprehending a peerless sword technique capable of felling ten thousand foes with a single stroke.

An elder, too, passed through the array and witnessed Xueying, grasping a cultivation method that extended his life beyond a century—yet still, he remained far from transcendent.

—

Soon, Xueying understood.

This ‘World Flower’ bloomed and withered too swiftly. As it changed, so too did the void and the laws within. Even if one grasped fragments of the cosmic principles, the rules would shift anew, rendering past insights obsolete and useless in harnessing the world’s power. Given the speed of these transformations, no talent, no matter how prodigious, could ascend to transcendence. Even if one succeeded, the moment the laws shifted, their power would wane, reducing them back to mere mortals.

Only as a Cosmic God, with the laws bending around him, could one remain unaffected.

“How marvelous,” Xueying marveled. “Even the laws themselves are in flux… and the evolution of the Void Path…”

Every facet of the Void Path unfolded before him.

If an invincible existence demonstrated techniques for their disciples, they might repeat them ten or eight times at most. But this World Flower was akin to an excruciatingly slow performance of an entire Void Path repertoire—lasting a full hundred thousand years! Xueying suspected that even if one reached the ultimate realm of the Void Path as a Cosmic God, their demonstrations would hardly be as comprehensive.

“A single World Flower feels like it encapsulates the entirety of the Void Path. Nine World Flowers—nine opportunities. If the others differ, could they unveil new wonders?” Xueying mused with anticipation.

Every moment was an eye-opening revelation.

Not even the personal disciples of invincible existences enjoyed such privileges. A pity that the nine opportunities spanned only nine hundred thousand years—he wished it could last longer.

—

**Heartvoid Continent.**

Dongbo Xueying arrived at the capital of the Southcloud Nation.

“Master, I require materials to cultivate the Southcloud Sacred Body to its twelfth-layer perfection—two sets,” Xueying requested of the Southcloud Monarch.

The monarch raised an eyebrow. “Two?”

He had already provided Xueying with one set before.

As he had stated, once a disciple reached the requisite realm, the materials for the Southcloud Sacred Body would be freely bestowed—but only once. Otherwise, with countless avatars, each death and subsequent re-cultivation would demand endless resources. Even his vast wealth could not sustain such extravagance.

“Here is the Demonheart Bell—it should suffice for two sets,” Xueying said, offering the treasure.

After a brief hesitation, the Southcloud Monarch accepted it with a smile.

He had never been one to fuss over such matters.

But constantly showering his disciple with gifts might breed discomfort.

“The materials for perfection are exceedingly rare. I haven’t gathered many myself,” the monarch remarked. “Yet you request two sets now, atop the previous one—three in total. What do you need so many for? In battle, a single combat avatar suffices. With the Five-Phase Pearl and the Crimson Cloud Divine Spear, whether you cultivate the Southcloud Sacred Body or not hardly affects your strength.”

“I have plans,” Xueying replied.

“Ah, so you intend to gamble big in the Heartvoid Divine Palace this time,” the monarch chuckled, flicking his sleeve. A golden bracelet flew toward Xueying. “The storage ring contains the two sets.”

Xueying caught it.

The materials were exorbitantly precious, their value indeed matching the Demonheart Bell.

Truthfully, the bell was now useless to him. In the hundred million years since becoming a Cosmic God, his mastery of the Illusory Realm Path, though lagging behind the Void Path, had still advanced. He had elevated three of its five branches—’World,’ ‘Illusion,’ and ‘Desire’—to the Cosmic God realm. The remaining two remained stuck at the Chaos realm.

As for fusion? That was still a distant dream.

In contrast, his Void Path had swiftly reached the Cosmic God realm across all nine branches shortly after his breakthrough. Now, he had even fused the Heavenly and Earthly Aspects, ascending to the second layer. His progress here far outpaced the Illusory Realm Path.

Alas, the Void Path’s foundation was far deeper.

The Illusory Realm had been a solitary pursuit until he acquired the precious *Heartworld* tome—yet even this was merely a second-layer Cosmic God scripture, offering limited guidance. The *Hunyuan Inquiry*, for instance, detailed not only a body-refining method requiring the fusion of eight branches but also provided exhaustive explanations and fusion guidance for each. Moreover, his master, the Southcloud Monarch, was a supreme expert in the Void Path, with countless scriptures at his disposal. From the outset, Xueying had synthesized the nine branches into the *Nine Revolutions Immortality Art*. His foundation and external conditions were simply unparalleled.

By comparison… the Illusory Realm Path was a far more arduous journey.

The Demonheart Bell, a mere tenth-level Cosmic God treasure of the Illusory Realm, contained two techniques—’Enchanting Chime’ and ‘World.’ Both branches Xueying had already mastered; he no longer needed the bell to wield them. In fact, he could now wield three branches.

“With these two sets, my strength will rise significantly. This time in the Heartvoid Divine Palace, I must seize the opportunity,” Xueying resolved silently.

He knew that before his home Chaos Void perished, he might never get another chance.

—

Finally, ten thousand years after the Heartvoid Divine Palace’s fluctuations began—

“All assemble at the Summerwind Imperial Palace.” The voice of the Summer Emperor echoed in Xueying’s ears.

Within a quiet chamber, nine Xueyings sat cross-legged. Though he now possessed tens of thousands of avatars, only nine could maintain peak strength.

“Time to depart.”

All nine rose.

Whoosh.

Eight dissolved into streaks of light, vanishing into a pocket realm treasure, while the remaining Xueying waved a hand, tearing open a Void Passage that led directly outside the Summerwind capital.

—

Emerging beyond the city walls, he entered through the gates and strode across the sky, soon arriving at the imperial palace.

He and the Flame Fiend Overlord arrived almost simultaneously—the last to appear.

“Summer Emperor. Azure Emperor.” Xueying bowed to the two figures.

The Summer Emperor, clad in resplendent black robes, exuded an ethereal yet imperious aura, as if overseeing all creation. Beside him, the Azure Emperor radiated an overwhelming, terrifying presence, his every movement seemingly capable of annihilating lesser Cosmic Gods. Xueying knew their dreadful might stemmed from their Supreme Treasures.

“All are present,” the Summer Emperor said, scanning the group. “Remember—you may bring no other living beings. Not even pets. Any intelligent lifeform counts as one entry.”

Xueying and the others nodded. This was common knowledge.

Of course, no matter how many avatars or clones one possessed, they shared a single soul—thus counting as one life.

“Let us go.”

The Summer and Azure Emperors led the way.

Whoosh.

In an instant, they stood above the boundless Black Prison Darksea, its waves churning, its waters pitch-black.

The Summer Emperor plunged downward, his entourage in tow. They pierced through the ocean’s depths in a flash, bypassing layer upon layer of invisible barriers—the Divine Palace’s outermost defenses. Then, through the seabed’s rocky strata, until at last, in the abyssal darkness, a magnificent, sprawling palace complex came into view.

It blazed with radiant light, illuminating the void. Countless structures exuded auras—some of peak treasures, others of Supreme Treasures, their terrifying might palpable. Every Cosmic God present felt their hearts stir with longing.