Dongbo Xueying turned his gaze backward, glancing at another figure seated cross-legged upon the vast vine leaves. Master Meishan was sitting there in meditation, his expression serene and tranquil. Dongbo Xueying couldn’t help but admire inwardly, knowing well that Master Meishan had experienced far more than he had—having survived countless life-and-death trials within the Temple of Time and Space, and later breaking away from it resolutely, sparing no cost, and coming to the Xia Clan for so many years solely to prepare for this moment.
What kind of inner strength must such a person possess?
“Has Master Meishan arrived too?” Dongbo Xueying mused silently. “I wonder how Chen Jiu and the others are doing now. Brother Chen Jiu shoulders the fate of his family’s mountain estate and has even developed the techniques of eight arms. His talent is indeed extraordinary. I hope he succeeds.”
At this moment, having succeeded himself and about to become a Disciple Guardian, Dongbo Xueying couldn’t help but think of his companions. After all, Chen Jiu had once shared life-and-death experiences with him.
As these thoughts passed through his mind, Dongbo Xueying soared skyward.
No matter how much he pondered, it would be of no help—Chen Jiu, Sword Sovereign, and the others still had to rely on their own strength. This world was simply this cruel.
“Hoo—”
He flew upward along the massive trunk of the Tianlian Vine, and above it lay the membrane of space.
“Dongbo Xueying.” A very pleasant and gentle voice came from a green-haired woman, Xi Wei, who emerged from the massive trunk.
“Senior Xi Wei.” Dongbo Xueying immediately halted and respectfully bowed.
“Congratulations on passing the trials set by the Holy Master and becoming a Disciple Guardian,” Xi Wei smiled. “As a Disciple Guardian of Hongshi Mountain, you will gain many things. The ‘Ghost Hex Poison’ you’ve been worried about will be but a minor matter.”
Dongbo Xueying nodded.
He wasn’t surprised.
In higher spatial realms, treasures coveted even by World Gods were available—compared to that, curing a poison was trivial.
“Senior Xi Wei, may I ask how Chen Jiu and Sword Sovereign are doing now?” Dongbo Xueying inquired.
Xi Wei, the green-haired woman, replied casually, “Chen Jiu and Sword Sovereign, who entered Hongshi Mountain with you, still haven’t passed the Third Vine World. Only Master Meishan managed to breakthrough in his Spatial True Intent, reaching the ‘Spatial Divine Heart,’ thus allowing him to swiftly advance to the Fifth Vine World.”
“Spatial Divine Heart?” Dongbo Xueying was secretly astonished. The Second-Rank Divine Heart—rumored to allow immediate creation of a Divine Sea and ascension to godhood if one so desired.
“There’s nothing to be surprised about,” Xi Wei said indifferently. “Back in the Divine Realm, when Hongshi Mountain recruited disciples, countless extraordinary beings and even deities from numerous star regions came to undergo rigorous trials, all hoping to become Disciple Guardians of Hongshi Mountain. Thus, becoming a god was a basic requirement for any Disciple Guardian of Hongshi Mountain! Meishan Master, Sword Sovereign, and Chen Jiu have all been cultivating for a long time. If they couldn’t even condense a Second-Rank Divine Heart, how could they qualify as Disciple Guardians?”
“In the Divine Realm, the trials of Hongshi Mountain were sometimes even made more difficult precisely because so many extraordinary beings came to challenge them,” Xi Wei continued. “Now that it has descended into the mortal world, this level of difficulty is actually quite ordinary.”
Dongbo Xueying muttered inwardly. Even in the Divine Realm, they sometimes increased the difficulty?
Truly, strength breeds arrogance!
However, the Holy Master was already dead, and Hongshi Mountain had descended into the mortal world—it no longer had the luxury of being so arrogant.
“Come, I’ll send you up,” Xi Wei smiled gently. Her attitude toward Dongbo Xueying was completely different from her attitude toward the other three. In her view, even if Meishan Master and the others managed to become Disciple Guardians, they would barely scrape through the threshold, being the lowest tier of Guardians. Dongbo Xueying, however, had far greater potential. If properly nurtured and given enough experience, he might even have a chance to pursue the legendary First-Rank True Intent!
Xi Wei marveled inwardly at the arrival of such a prodigy. Transporting such a talent from the Temple of Time and Space would have been prohibitively expensive, beyond even the World Gods’ means. Fortunately, Dongbo Xueying was an extraordinary being native to the Xia Clan’s world.
Since Hongshi Mountain’s descent into the mortal world, having such an extraordinary being join was truly fortunate! According to Xi Wei’s thoughts, they should have even waived the trials altogether, but the rules set by the Holy Master were strictly upheld by the spirit of Hongshi Mountain, allowing no alterations whatsoever.
“Hoo—”
Xi Wei and Dongbo Xueying flew upward side by side.
As they touched the spatial membrane, it naturally parted.
Huaa—
Passing through the membrane, Dongbo Xueying felt the colors around him shift. He saw that the surroundings were now endless rock and soil.
The Tianlian Vine continued growing upward through these rocks and soil.
Dongbo Xueying and Xi Wei continued forward.
The layer of earth was about a million li thick. With Xi Wei’s assistance, Dongbo Xueying’s flying speed easily surpassed ten thousand li per second, and this was even considerate of Dongbo Xueying, allowing him to observe everything carefully. Otherwise, with Xi Wei’s power, she could probably teleport directly to the destination.
“Hoo—”
Finally, they broke through the earth layer.
The Tianlian Vine also broke through the earth, continuing its upward growth!
Dongbo Xueying looked around. This land stretched boundlessly, faintly teeming with countless living beings. In the distant horizon, there were even powerful presences that made his heart tremble.
“This entire land spans over ten billion li, home to countless lives,” Xi Wei explained. “There are humans, insect beasts, and so on, with over a hundred million gods.”
Dongbo Xueying was stunned.
A land spanning ten billion li might be manageable, but over a hundred million gods?
Could gods be counted in the hundreds of millions? Thinking about it, it made sense. It was said that the Material World contained countless mortal realms, each of which historically produced many gods. Adding them all together, the number was indeed vast. Not to mention the Divine Realm and the Dark Abyss, where cultivation conditions were even better, making the number of divine-level experts truly astronomical.
Earlier, Chen Jiu had also mentioned that the difference between gods and World Gods was like the difference between mortals and the extraordinary. Considering the sheer number of mortals, one could imagine how numerous gods must be.
“What good is their multitude? They are rejected by the entire Material World and cannot even leave Hongshi Mountain,” Xi Wei said. “The status of a Disciple Guardian of Hongshi Mountain is far above that of ordinary gods. They do not reside on this land but in the skies. Follow me.”
“In the skies?”
Following Xi Wei, Dongbo Xueying continued flying upward along the Tianlian Vine.
After ascending hundreds of millions of li, they encountered thick clouds. Passing through the clouds, they flew further upward, encountering more clouds.
They passed through six layers of clouds in total.
Finally, they arrived at a misty, white expanse, and the top of the Tianlian Vine was truly visible.
“Look,” Xi Wei pointed to a nearby spot.
Dongbo Xueying saw a beautiful floating island. On the island stood mountains, waterfalls like white ribbons, and exquisite buildings. The floating island itself was estimated to span over ten thousand li.
“This is ‘Hongchen Island.’ From the Disciple Guardians below to the Holy Master’s personal disciples, all cultivate here,” Xi Wei explained. “Come with me.”
Whoosh whoosh.
The two flew side by side.
Soon, they reached this beautiful floating island. Though the scenery was breathtaking, the island was completely deserted and eerily quiet.
“Since descending into the mortal world, Hongshi Mountain has had no new outsiders entering. Hongchen Island has become very desolate. With the Holy Master dead and no one to guide cultivation, all the disciples have descended to the lower realms. At least there, there are countless humans and insect beasts, with over a hundred million gods—relatively lively.”
Dongbo Xueying nodded.
Xi Wei then led him forward, landing before an elegant pavilion. From within the pavilion emerged a man dressed in splendid attire, his smile carrying a peculiar charm.
“This is Senior Hongshi,” Xi Wei introduced.
“Senior? I’m merely a spirit of this artifact,” the splendidly dressed man chuckled. “Now that Hongchen Island has no one else, I, as the artifact’s spirit, preside over everything here.”
Dongbo Xueying immediately understood. This splendid man was the spirit of the terrifying artifact, Hongshi Mountain. He respectfully bowed. “Dongbo Xueying pays respects to Senior Hongshi.”
The splendid man looked at Dongbo Xueying and nodded with a smile. “In the lower realms spanning ten billion li, no extraordinary being has emerged that caught my eye. Unexpectedly, a mortal world could produce such an extraordinary being. Truly rare and precious.”
“Even the extraordinary beings sent down from the Divine Realm and the Dark Abyss by the World Gods are no match for Dongbo Xueying,” Xi Wei added. “Beings of Dongbo Xueying’s caliber are not easily found.”
Though Dongbo Xueying had experienced two invitations from the Temple of Time and Space and knew his talent was considerable, hearing Xi Wei and Senior Hongshi praise him directly made him stand silently, though inwardly delighted.
“Poisoned by the Ghost Hex?” The resplendent man cast him a glance and chuckled. “A mere trifle. There’s no hurry. Accompany me first to pay homage to the Holy Master. Only after the initiation ceremony shall you be truly recognized as a Disciple Guardian.”
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