Chapter 1282: The Great Wilderness Hunt

As Dongbo Xueying perused the scroll, he couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

This world was teeming with formidable experts. Though its laws were incomplete, the number of powerful beings here surpassed even that of the Heartworld Continent’s Broken Tooth Mountain Range! Moreover, there were three living Meta-Hunyuan experts.

Among the eight ‘Void Path’ ascended Divine Emperors, according to intelligence, five were at the early stage, two at the mid-stage, and one at the late stage. Only two were capable of performing Great Shattered Boundary Teleportation, and neither of them had ever leaked their cultivation manuals. Clearly, possessing such a life-saving escape technique made them disdainful of sharing their fundamental methods.

“Of the five manuals circulating outside, three belong to early-stage Divine Emperors, and two to mid-stage ones,” Dongbo Xueying mused.

“These manuals are almost exclusively hoarded by major factions.”

“To obtain them, one usually has to pledge loyalty to a great power and even make significant contributions.”

In this world, acquiring ‘Divine Lord-level’ cultivation manuals was relatively easy—after all, Divine Lords were numerous, and even if someone managed to cultivate to that level using such manuals, they posed no threat to major factions. However, obtaining ‘Divine Emperor-level’ manuals was exceedingly difficult. For instance, the Yu Feng Clan of Junshan City possessed only three such manuals, all stored in the highest level of their scripture repository!

Only those deemed ‘absolutely loyal’ could hope to access them.

“These five ascended Divine Emperor manuals are even harder to obtain than those of the native-born,” Dongbo Xueying shook his head. Scarcity dictated value! Ninety-nine percent of the experts in the Divine Realm were native-born, cultivating their bloodlines, so ‘Divine Emperor-level’ bloodline manuals were abundant. But ascended manuals were far rarer.

“Pledge absolute loyalty to a faction?” Dongbo Xueying dismissed the idea instantly.

In Junshan City, he only held a nominal position—hardly absolute loyalty, and thus unqualified to peruse Divine Emperor-level manuals.

The factions that possessed ascended Divine Emperor manuals were far mightier than Junshan City, which was but an ordinary power in the vast Divine Realm.

“Only two options remain.”

“First, acquire a treasure so coveted by a major faction that they’d be willing to trade.”

“Second, attend the upcoming top-tier auction at the Tianxin Pavilion in Jiangyuan City, where an early-stage Divine Emperor cultivation manual—*The Void Worm Codex*—will be auctioned. I could bid for it, or even find a way to study it once without purchasing.”

But trading with a major faction?

They were wealthy, and Divine Emperor-level manuals were foundational treasures. Without pledging loyalty, only an overwhelmingly attractive treasure could secure such an exchange.

“Alas.”

“When I entered the Serpent Fang Corridor, I prepared to sacrifice this avatar, carrying no significant treasures.”

“Even this spear I wield was a gift from the Yu Feng Clan. I’m too poor to bargain with major factions. My only choice is to accumulate treasures for the Jiangyuan City auction.”

The more elite experts attended the auction, the higher the final bids would soar.

Thus, the Tianxin Pavilion had long since spread word of the rare treasures to be auctioned. Jiangyuan City ranked among the top hundred in the Divine Realm, and with such publicity, the bidding would be fierce.

“The auction begins in twelve hundred years. Jiangyuan City is incredibly distant from Junshan City—even by greatship, it would take over a million years. But with my Great Shattered Boundary Teleportation, I can arrive swiftly. Time is ample. In these twelve hundred years, I must gather treasures… and the only way is to venture into the Great Wasteland!” Dongbo Xueying resolved.

The Great Wasteland was perilous.

Yet the carcasses of top-tier desolate beasts were immensely valuable, many of which greatly aided native-born cultivators in refining their bloodlines.

“Qingyin,” Dongbo Xueying suddenly spoke while drinking with his disciple.

“Master?” Yu Feng Qingyin looked at him.

“I’m going into seclusion. If anything urgent arises, contact me directly,” he said.

Yu Feng Qingyin was startled but quickly nodded. “Understood. Your cultivation takes precedence.”

Dongbo Xueying smiled.

His true plan was to hunt in the Great Wasteland, then attend the auction in twelve hundred years. To the outside world, he would claim to be in seclusion. If anything critical happened, a single message from his disciple would summon him back via teleportation.

“Master is entering seclusion,” Yu Feng Qingyin thought despondently. “This could last hundreds of millions of years. By the time he emerges, the Master of the Demonic Heart Sect may have already struck.”

The lesser-known members of the Yu Feng Clan might escape, but its core leaders and Yu Feng Junshan’s children would surely be slaughtered.

—

After his disciple left, Dongbo Xueying announced his seclusion.

In his quiet chamber, his form shimmered, transforming into an unremarkable black-robed youth.

“Let’s go.” A dark rift tore open beside him, and he vanished into it.

He reappeared in the distant Great Wasteland—a journey that would take hundreds of thousands of years by greatship.

“Time to hunt.”

The black-robed youth emerged from the rift, scanning the desolate expanse. “Ordinary desolate beasts are worthless. I need peak Divine Lord-level ones. If I’m lucky, I might even encounter a low-tier Meta-Hunyuan lifeform.”

He sighed.

The Great Wasteland was dangerous—but only for most native-born cultivators, as Divine Lord-level desolate beasts were plentiful.

For Divine Emperors, however, it was a highway. Desolate beasts almost never reached Divine Emperor-level. Thus, a greatship traveling from Junshan City to Eastwood City over two millennia faced no real threat. True Divine Emperor-level threats were rare—usually ‘low-tier innate Meta-Hunyuan lifeforms.’

These beings were manifestations of the world’s laws. Though ‘low-tier,’ their bodies were treasure troves for native-born cultivators refining their bloodlines. Even ascended cultivators benefited greatly from them.

For Dongbo Xueying, the corpse of a Void Path Meta-Hunyuan lifeform would be far more valuable than any ascended manual.

“Pity.”

“These innate Meta-Hunyuan lifeforms are highly intelligent. With so many experts in the Divine Realm, they don’t wander the Wasteland recklessly. Most hide, some under the protection of stronger kin.”

Take the Willow Valley Master, for example—an innate Meta-Hunyuan lifeform. Unless the three Meta-Hunyuan Progenitors intervened, none could challenge him. Dozens of weaker Meta-Hunyuan lifeforms had sworn allegiance to him.

Those who dared roam the Wasteland alone…

…usually possessed terrifying innate abilities, making them nearly impossible to kill.

“If I could slay one, it’d be a windfall,” Dongbo Xueying mused. Though low-tier Meta-Hunyuan lifeforms might not excel in combat, their bodies were incredibly resilient—far tougher to kill than native-born or ascended cultivators of similar strength. With his Illusory Realm Path, he might stand a chance against the weakest.

But finding one was another matter entirely.

—

The Great Wasteland stretched endlessly. Dongbo Xueying searched for ‘peak Divine Lord-level’ desolate beasts—the rarest of their kind.

Otherwise, ordinary Divine Lord-level cultivators wouldn’t dare venture here for training.

“Peak Divine Lord-level desolate beasts are too scarce.”

He scoured the land tirelessly.

Using his Void Domain to actively probe, he finally discovered one after over a year—lurking deep within a remote lake.

…