Brother Huiming said, “Junior Brother Dongbo, I now reside permanently at the ‘Far Dust Temple.’ If you need to find me, you can go there. As for regular communication… we can stay in touch through messaging treasures.”
“Understood,” Dongbo Xueying replied. Both he and Brother Huiming left their marks on each other’s messaging treasures, allowing them to sense and contact one another.
Soon after, Brother Huiming took his leave.
“Senior Brother Huiming is highly respected among the disciples of the Red Stone Mountain. Seeing him today, he truly is extraordinary—he came specifically to meet me and treated me, a junior brother, with such courtesy,” Dongbo Xueying mused. Though he had potential, his status as a wielder of a First-Class True Intent had never been revealed. Moreover, Senior Brother Huiming had also been a First-Class True Intent Transcendent in his youth—the only such disciple personally taken in by the Living Saint Lord of the Red Dust. Now, he was a Fourth Heaven World God.
“I heard that Senior Brother Huiming suffered a heartbreak in his youth and later became a monk,” Yu Jingqiu remarked with a sigh. “His talent was peerless, and as a First-Class True Intent Transcendent, he later spread his faith extensively due to personal grudges… rapidly ascending to the Fourth Heaven World God realm.”
Dongbo Xueying nodded.
Faith…
It was a tremendous aid to cultivation! Gathering the power of countless believers’ faith could drastically accelerate one’s progress. For a First-Class True Intent Transcendent with innate talent, cultivation would naturally advance by leaps and bounds. Yet, faith was a double-edged sword—what it built, it could also destroy. Faith was a shackle of karma; the more one absorbed, the harder it became to transcend. This was the greatest obstacle for Fourth Heaven World Gods seeking to become Great Existences.
Still, countless World Gods continued to spread and absorb faith, for without it, they might at best reach the Second Heaven World God realm. With faith, they could confidently ascend to the Third Heaven—or, with great fortune, even the Fourth Heaven. Naturally, many were willing to take that risk. As for failing to become a Great Existence in the end?
Throughout the ages, how many in the Divine Realm and the Abyss had truly achieved that?
It was far too difficult.
Of course, unless under special circumstances, First-Class True Intent Transcendents generally avoided absorbing faith. Dongbo Xueying had been warned by the artifact spirit of the Red Stone: never absorb faith. The potential of a First-Class True Intent Transcendent was immense, and reaching the Fourth Heaven World God realm was already highly probable. Sacrificing the chance to become a Great Existence just to save time by absorbing faith was simply not worth it.
…
Days passed, and finally, the day of the Ten Thousand Flowers Banquet arrived.
At the Divine Court, within the main hall.
The grand hall towered endlessly into the heavens, its highest point serving as the venue for the Ten Thousand Flowers Banquet. Surrounded by swirling clouds, streaks of light shot across the sky as Great Existences arrived from afar, each exuding vastly different auras—some blazing and overwhelming, capable of incinerating vast distances in an instant; others restrained like unfathomable abysses; still others sharp enough to rend the void, sending shivers down the spines of Dongbo Xueying and the others.
Dongbo Xueying and the other 1,900 participants sat at the outermost edge, each with a table of food before them. Around them stood guards, the lowest among them being First Heaven World Gods, with occasional Second Heaven World Gods. Closer to the Divine Emperor and the Great Existences, Third Heaven World God guards stood in respectful attendance.
“I recall that General Ying’s father is a Third Heaven World God, one of His Majesty’s personal guards,” Dongbo Xueying thought, glancing toward the Divine Emperor’s direction and spotting the Third Heaven guards stationed nearby. “I suppose General Ying’s father must be among them.”
As mere Deities, they couldn’t perceive what was happening at the banquet. They only felt an intangible pressure, their vision obscured by a hazy mist in the distance.
…
The Bloodblade Divine Emperor sat at the highest seat, clad in dark red robes, his eyes fathomless. Around him, an aura of endless darkness and destruction loomed. His mere presence made the other Great Existences at the banquet instinctively wary. Beside him, at nearly the same height, sat three others—their auras equally formidable, nearly matching the Divine Emperor’s.
One was a ruler from the Abyss, his massive frame exuding an air of boundless bloodlust. The Dark Abyss had three such rulers, just as the Divine Realm had the Island Lord of Time and Space, the Bloodblade Divine Emperor, and the Master of Ten Thousand Gods standing at its pinnacle. These three rulers reigned supreme in the Dark Abyss.
Another Abyssal ruler was a cold, stern man clad in golden armor, his gaze the sharpest of all. None of the Great Existences below dared meet his eyes.
The last was a dignified and noble woman, her aura the most restrained and gentle—yet she stood on equal footing with the Bloodblade Divine Emperor and the others.
Apart from these four…
The other Great Existences were scattered below, numbering nearly a hundred! Some hailed from the Dark Abyss, others were under the Bloodblade Divine Court’s banner, but the majority were independent Great Existences unaffiliated with any major power. Proud by nature, most refused to submit to others. Even the Bloodblade Divine Emperor, the Island Lord of Time and Space, and the Master of Ten Thousand Gods commanded only limited loyalty.
For instance, while the Bloodblade Divine Court had some Great Existences under its wing, some were there for refuge, others due to master-disciple ties…
Aside from the Great Existences, Fourth Heaven World Gods also attended the banquet—though only those affiliated with the Bloodblade Divine Court. External Fourth Heaven World Gods were not invited.
“Old Monkey, I heard you snatched a ‘Solar Core Stone’ from the Sun Star?”
“Who’s spreading nonsense? Solar Core Stones haven’t appeared in the Sun Star for billions of years. Me, getting one? People must be going mad with desire for them.”
…
“Come, let’s share a drink, Brother Wu. It’s been ages since we last met. I didn’t expect you to attend the Ten Thousand Flowers Banquet this time.”
“I’ve been in seclusion, but made some progress, so I decided to take a break.”
…
The Great Existences chatted in small groups, those on friendly terms sitting together while those with grudges kept their distance.
“Esteemed guests,” the Bloodblade Divine Emperor spoke from above, his voice cool. “With so many friends gathered here, the Ten Thousand Flowers Banquet is truly lively. I am delighted. Continue enjoying your drinks and conversations… and while you do, how about we watch the little ones from my Bloodblade Divine Court compete?”
The Great Existences turned their gazes outward.
Their eyes effortlessly settled upon the 1,900 Deities outside, though most were merely spectators. Only the Great Existences of the Bloodblade Divine Court were permitted to take disciples; the others refrained out of courtesy.
Among the Great Existences was Patriarch Redflame, an independent power who had not joined the Bloodblade Divine Court.
“Let it begin, then,” the Bloodblade Divine Emperor said indifferently. For an existence like him, who had stood at the pinnacle for eons, the Ten Thousand Flowers Banquet was merely a gathering of old friends. Selecting disciples was but a minor affair. Even those of high status rarely took disciples—the Divine Emperor himself couldn’t be bothered to take on a First-Class True Intent Transcendent.
…
To the Great Existences, this was a trivial matter, a mere diversion.
But for Dongbo Xueying and the other Deities, it was a rare and monumental opportunity. When else would so many Great Existences gather in one place?
“Prepare yourselves,” a blood-armored general emerged from within, his aura vast—a Fourth Heaven World God. His gaze swept over the 1,900 Deities. “I will now send you to the battlefield for the Divine Court’s trial.”
Dongbo Xueying, the Seventh Plum Rain, Jiu She, the Solitary Drunkard, and other elite Deities from various prefectures waited in silence.
At last—
The blood-armored general activated the formation. Beneath the area where Dongbo Xueying and the others stood, a golden array lit up. An invisible force immediately enveloped their consciousness, hurling it into the distance. In an instant, all 1,900 Deities lost awareness as their minds were transported elsewhere.
…
“Hmm?”
Dongbo Xueying found himself before a towering mountain, surrounded by sprawling ranges. The mountain was riddled with countless caves, from which mist of various colors—purple, black, gold—drifted upward.
With a glance, he spotted other Deities hovering in the air nearby. Clearly, the 1,900 participants had been scattered across these mountains.
“Incredible. They moved my consciousness here so effortlessly?” Dongbo Xueying examined his body. “And this body is identical to my real one—same Ten Thousand Tribulations Mixed Origin Body at the third layer, same Great Chaos True Force.”
The Divine Court’s trial was the safest—only consciousness was transported. Even if one “died,” their consciousness would simply return.
“Dongbo, first in the Anhai Prefecture ranking battle, second in the survival trial?” A Deity in the distance frowned upon seeing Dongbo Xueying and immediately flew away.
Among the 1,900, Dongbo Xueying was undeniably near the top. Only those who had grasped First-Class Divine Hearts could truly surpass him.
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