“Young man, you’re overthinking. What are you speculating about?”
The bird elder seemed dazed, his eyes vacant, offering no useful hints. Black mist swirled in this place, and the two old men showed clear signs of demonic corruption.
Though the two powerful figures also activated their profound techniques, the effect of expelling the black mist was minimal.
The reason was simple—over the long years, their frequent visits here had allowed the black mist to deeply corrode them, making it impossible to completely eradicate.
“Farewell, seniors!” Shi Hao didn’t press further. He decided to leave for now.
He would surely return to this place in the future, for here lay adversaries—beings capable of life-and-death battles that could temper his Dao body.
Shi Hao departed, seeking greater strength through cultivation. He believed that in the near future, he would return to truly begin his challenges.
By then, he would be like an unsheathed immortal sword, his edge aimed at so-called peerless powerhouses!
Behind Stone Village lay a muddy pond, where Shi Hao had set up an array.
At his current level, with formation diagrams and mana at his disposal, even a rudimentary imitation could be arranged flawlessly.
Having plundered treasures from various sects and brought countless heavenly materials from the Upper Realm, constructing a complete divine array posed no problem.
Whoosh!
Flames surged, and a true dragon soared into the sky. Ge Gu remained trapped within the formation, roaring furiously.
“Still lacking refinement!” Shi Hao shouted.
He was training the Crimson Dragon, teaching it divine abilities—truly treating it as a disciple.
Ge Gu’s cultivation here was forced. Within the array, its destructive power was drastically reduced, contained so as not to affect the wilderness.
In recent days, the Crimson Dragon had submitted. After careful consideration, it bowed to Shi Hao as its master!
Now, it endured the most grueling training, roaring in a manner that drew the attention of many villagers.
Its suffering was real, for the first step was to forget its own race, shouting: “I am a phoenix!”
The Golden Lion, Yun Xi, and others had long been startled, gaping in disbelief. Had this dragon gone mad under Shi Hao’s training?
At first, it had merely trained diligently, but now it was spouting such nonsense—had it lost its mind?
Many suspected Shi Hao had driven the dragon to insanity.
“I am a phoenix, peerless in talent, reborn from flames!” the Crimson Dragon declared, its voice resolute.
“You’re its master—how can you push it like this? It’s losing its mind,” Yun Xi spoke up, warning Shi Hao that excess was as bad as deficiency. Forcing Ge Gu into such relentless training had caused serious issues.
“It’s not mad. I’m teaching it skills. To cultivate peerless treasure techniques, it must forget itself!” Shi Hao replied calmly.
Everyone was stunned, unsure why he treated the Crimson Dragon this way.
“I am a phoenix—a wingless phoenix!” Ge Gu bellowed, its voice growing louder, flames blazing around it.
The crowd was dumbfounded, their expressions growing stranger by the minute.
“The reasoning is simple. It never inherited the supreme legacy of the true dragon lineage, so I’m teaching it another race’s great techniques—the secret arts of the True Phoenix,” Shi Hao explained.
At first, the Crimson Dragon had resisted fiercely, fearing ridicule. A true dragon unable to master its own race’s techniques, forced to learn phoenix arts?
But now, Ge Gu had gradually embraced it.
As it roared, it truly began to envision itself as a phoenix.
“I am a wingless phoenix!” the Crimson Dragon cried.
Its voice was still youthful but firm, self-hypnotized and fully immersed.
Swoosh!
Phoenix wings spread—two streaks of crimson radiance shimmered at its sides, tearing through the sky with terrifying might.
Soon, the True Phoenix soared, the two streaks manifesting like divine wings sweeping across the heavens, showcasing the phoenix race’s fearsome power.
Without the True Dragon Treasure Technique, Shi Hao taught it Phoenix Secret Arts.
His reasoning was rooted in the legend of the dragon and phoenix’s auspicious union.
If one mastered the secret arts of both races, it would form an invincible lineage, capable of sweeping the world.
The Crimson Dragon would first learn the phoenix’s divine abilities. Later, if it awakened its dragon heritage, the union of dragon and phoenix could truly be realized.
“I am a wingless lion—no, a phoenix!” The Golden Lion also shouted, shamelessly stepping forward to demand the True Phoenix Treasure Technique from Shi Hao.
But Shi Hao refused without hesitation.
“You’re a demon from the foreign realm—why should you master the Nine Heavens’ supreme secrets? If you want to learn, submit completely and reveal all your secrets,” Shi Hao retorted, casting it a sidelong glance.
The Golden Lion’s face darkened with displeasure.
“Still defiant? I sent you to find the Five-Colored Sparrow, yet you’ve failed to catch it. What use are you?” Shi Hao mocked.
The Golden Lion swore it hadn’t slacked off—it had searched tirelessly for the sparrow that dared defile its nose. But failure was failure, leaving it seething.
Shi Hao had been cultivating relentlessly, deciphering the True Phoenix’s mysteries. His guidance for the Crimson Dragon was merely fragmented time—most of his focus remained on his own training.
That day, Qing Feng returned.
Shi Hao rose to inquire about the situation, then mounted the Golden Lion and departed with Qing Feng for the Stone Nation, ready to act.
In recent days, the Barren Domain had been in turmoil. Many knew Shi Hao had returned, sparking widespread discussion.
Yet some remained skeptical, suspecting the “Milk-Loving Menace” of the Void God Realm might be an imposter.
“I think it’s just his soul descending from the Upper Realm into the Void God Realm. His true body hasn’t returned. Think about it—no one can come down from the Upper Realm now.”
“But the Stone Nation’s palace confirmed Little Stone’s return. And Princess Qianqian from the Profound Domain claimed to have seen him. How could that be false?”
“You’re misinformed. The Stone Nation is unstable—the Stone Emperor might be forced to abdicate. His supporters are spreading shocking news to bolster morale.”
Many believed Shi Hao had returned, but a stubborn few insisted his true body couldn’t descend, citing various reasons.
The Stone Nation’s palace found it absurd—genuine news was being doubted. Where was the justice?
Yet all disputes ceased that day.
Shi Hao appeared in the Stone Nation’s capital and struck decisively, shaking the land.
Two powerful old princes were subdued effortlessly, crushed beneath his hand.
“Your Majesty!”
Their clans panicked, the remaining members trembling on their knees, consumed by dread.
In truth, they had lived in fear for days, anticipating retribution upon the young Stone Emperor’s return.
Over the years, they had conspired with the former royal lineage to overthrow Qing Feng.
“In the past, I treated your clans well, even gifting rare elixirs. Is this how you repay me?!” Shi Hao demanded coldly, his fury genuine.
The two old princes had once been his trusted allies, showered with benefits. Yet after his departure, they schemed against his brother.
“Stone Emperor, spare us!” members of the clans begged.
Shi Hao acted swiftly, crippling the two old princes without hesitation.
He took solace in the unwavering loyalty of War King, Peng King, and others, who had protected Qing Feng without faltering.
“Little Stone, how audacious!”
A voice boomed from the horizon, approaching rapidly, wreathed in divine flames and sacred aura.
“A deity!” someone gasped.
“The Rain Clan’s summoned expert. Rumors say they enlisted a god-level powerhouse capable of rivaling the Zhu Yan, emboldening those coveting the throne,” a whisper spread.
Boom!
The being arrived in a blaze of divine fire, its skull radiating dazzling light, auspicious clouds swirling.
“Wait—this creature might have reached the True One Realm. A True God!” someone exclaimed.
“Little Stone, how dare you flaunt yourself in the Lower Realm? Let me test your mettle!”
The god-level expert struck, reaching for Shi Hao.
To many, attaining godhood was near-impossible. A decade had passed—even if Shi Hao had touched the threshold, he couldn’t have surpassed it.
A confirmed True God’s arrival bolstered the confidence of those who had feared Shi Hao’s return.
Yet what followed left the crowd stunned.
Shi Hao didn’t move. Instead, the Golden Lion beneath him opened its maw and—chomp!—bit the deity in half.
Silence fell. Everyone was speechless.
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