Chapter 585: New God: The Second Xuanming (4k)

The ninth heaven, the Eternal Ice Fortress.

Yu Wang and Zhang Jian entered the depths of the Eternal Ice Fortress together.

After returning to the Eternal Ice Fortress, Zhang Jian sensed that the sole prisoner on the ninth layer of the Eternal Ice Prison, Jiu Feng, had already escaped.

As for this matter, Zhang Jian had anticipated it long ago and could only report it to the Heavenly Court for handling.

In the Hall of the Eternal Heavenly Sovereign, Yu Wang had already foreseen Jiu Feng's escape.

Jiu Feng had originally used Zhang Jian's help to go to the Pingxin Hall to seek aid, hoping that Hou Tu Niangniang would lend assistance.

However, since this matter involved Zhang Jian's path, the two could only tacitly accept such a transaction.

Yu Wang said to Zhang Jian.

"Ah Yu, the last prisoner on the ninth layer of the Eternal Ice Prison has broken free; for you, this is also an opportunity—a rare chance for a transformation plan!"

"You can thus replace the power of the Xuanming Divine Position from within the Eternal Immortal Prison!"

Zhang Jian's eyes flickered.

He then asked: "Ancestral Master, the power of the Xuanming Divine Position is extraordinarily vast; if we construct the Eternal Immortal Prison using power from other levels, will it affect the stability of the Eternal Immortal Prison?"

Yu Wang nodded slightly and said.

"The impact is certain; the Eternal Immortal Prison was originally built with the Xuanming Divine Position as its main body, but now we are to replace the Xuanming Divine Position, using a single piece of pure Xuanming Supreme Treasure, or a Xuanming Divine Artifact, which will naturally affect the divine energy of the Eternal Immortal Prison. However, we can add two suppressing supreme treasures to assist, and barely maintain the structure of the Eternal Immortal Prison!"

"But from now on, we certainly cannot easily suppress Dao Jun-level powerhouses!"

"You actually need not worry about this; since the Jade Emperor took control of the Heavenly Court, Dao Jun-level and above prisoners basically do not exist, and even if any do, they are imprisoned in the Tianjie as the Huahua Palace!"

The Huahua Palace, one of the Six Palaces of the Heavenly Realm.

This is currently where the Heavenly Realm imprisons major criminals.

"Ancestral Master, I happen to have a few supreme treasures in my hand; I wonder if they could substitute?"

Zhang Jian pondered, then took out several supreme treasures from his person.

He possessed not a few Eternal-level immortal treasures on his person; from the Lotus King's relics, he had obtained three or four, including the Lotus King's Treasure Realm, the Qinglian Creation Immortal Shield, the Creation Immortal Pagoda, and the Purification Vessel.

Lastly, he also took out the Postnatal Supreme Treasure, the Nine Heavens Qinglian Diagram.

Yu Wang's gaze fell upon the Postnatal Supreme Treasure, the Nine Heavens Qinglian Diagram, and there was a hint of astonishment in his eyes.

Postnatal Supreme Treasure—this object is of extraordinary value.

In fact, the vast majority of Dao Jun cultivators do not possess a Postnatal Supreme Treasure-level divine object as their trump card.

Zhang Jian is far more affluent than Yu Wang had imagined.

Yu Wang glanced at it and then shook his head.

"Using a Postnatal Supreme Treasure to suppress this place would be too wasteful, and would also waste your own fortune!"

"I think we should just use those three Eternal Divine Artifacts within the Eternal Immortal Prison; after all, those three Xuanming Divine Artifacts cannot be taken out of the Eternal Immortal Prison anyway!"

"Besides, we just need to refine one more Eternal-level immortal treasure!"

Seeing this, Zhang Jian said.

"Ancestral Master, will this provoke criticism from the Heavenly Court?"

Upon hearing this, Yu Wang shook his head and smiled.

"As long as the Eternal Immortal Prison remains stable and does not fall under the scrutiny of a third party, other immortals and gods will naturally not trouble you!"

"Moreover, the Eternal Immortal Prison was originally opened up by the Ancient Heavenly Emperor, and its interior contains the tyrannical methods of demons and monsters; these demonic and monstrous methods, due to the passage of time, have developed problems, and that is naturally none of your concern!"

"However, this matter must wait until the Heavenly Court dispatches an envoy!"

Zhang Jian gave a slight nod.

After Jiu Feng's escape, the Heavenly Court will certainly dispatch an envoy to question him; he must find a way to deflect.

However, as Yu Wang said, the Eternal Immortal Prison already has a precedent of a Dao Jun-level Golden Cicada shedding its shell; this matter naturally also has room for explanation.

Even if one suffers some setbacks or has their term extended, for Zhang Jian, it is of no consequence.

He happens to take this opportunity to completely replace the Xuanming Divine Position from within the Eternal Immortal Prison.

After thinking it over, Zhang Jian clattered and still took out a portion of the Xuanming-attributed heavenly and earthly divine materials he had obtained from the ninth layer of the Eternal Ice Prison, to see if he could select materials from them to reforge another Eternal Divine Artifact.

Yu Wang glanced at it; at first glance, he selected the fragment of the Xuanming Bone Staff, and then immediately chose a portion of ice-attributed heavenly and earthly divine materials from it.

He also selected three heavenly and earthly rare treasures of divine object grade.

The Innate Xuanming Divine Stone, Xuanming Divine Iron, plus the Eternal Soul.

These can be said to be what Zhang Jian obtained in the ice nest, besides the three most valuable divine objects of the Ice Spirit Fruit Tree.

Zhang Jian felt a pang of pain in his heart.

But for the sake of the Xuanming Divine Position, all this is worth it.

After all, for his sake, he cannot let Yu Wang bleed excessively.

Yu Wang said.

"With the power of these three heavenly and earthly rare treasures, combined with this fragment of the Xuanming Bone Staff, we should be able to forge a fourth-rank or higher Eternal Immortal Treasure to replace the Xuanming Divine Position and suppress the Eternal Immortal Prison!"

"This seat will return to the Three Emperors' Heavenly Realm and ask the Agricultural Emperor to act in refining it for you; at that time, it will surely be flawless!"

Yu Wang wore a smile.

Zhang Jian's expression turned solemn as he clasped his hands and said.

"Ancestral Master's great kindness, I, the disciple, truly do not know how to repay!"

Yu Wang's eyes glimmered with a smile.

"If you can step into the Dao Jun realm, that will be the greatest repayment to this seat!"

Zhang Jian, feeling moved, merely nodded slightly.

Zhang Jian knew that asking an existence of the Agricultural Emperor's level to act would surely involve incurring a deep favor.

If it were other sect elders, they might not necessarily extend such patronage to a disciple.

Zhang Jian made up his mind; he must repay this ancestor with all his might if there is any possibility in the future.

Yu Wang left the Eternal Ice Fortress directly.

However, inside and outside the Eternal Ice Fortress, chaos had begun.

After Zhang Jian reported, the immortals inside and outside the Eternal Ice Fortress only felt as if the sky had collapsed.

A Dao Lord ran out from within the Eternal Immortal Prison; for the immortals of the Eternal Ice Fortress, this was a huge hidden danger, possibly life-threatening at any moment.

……

The Heavenly Court reacted quickly; not long after, a Dao Lord of the Thunder Department arrived with many heavenly soldiers and generals.

Seeing that it was the Thunder Department Dao Lord, Zhang Jian's inner worries lessened considerably.

The relationship between the Tongshan Dao Lineage and the Heavenly Court's Thunder Department is still good.

This Thunder Department Heavenly Lord is called Jiutian Leizu Dijun, a well-known high-ranking Heavenly Lord in the Heavenly Court; he first inspected the ninth layer of the Eternal Ice Prison, and after confirming that the seal on Jiu Feng's body had been forcibly torn apart, he then spoke.

"Eternal Heavenly Lord, rest assured, I will report this matter impartially, without embellishment, and certainly without deliberate concealment!"

Under the Xuanming Divine Tree, Zhang Jian, upon hearing this, said.

"This matter still requires the Heavenly Lord to speak kindly of the disciple several times in the Heavenly Court!"

Gazing at this dark-faced Heavenly Lord, Zhang Jian felt a murmur in his heart.

This Jiutian Leizu Dijun is known for his firmness in the Heavenly Court.

Jiutian Leizu Dijun had a blank expression; at this moment, he said to the immortal beside him from the Tianshi Fu.

"Record: the Xuanming Seal was pierced directly by great divine power, the Holy Emperor's Talisman Edict collapsed, suspected to be the work of a Immortal Venerable-level expert; furthermore, the ninth layer of the Eternal Immortal Prison remains intact, undamaged—this doubt is sufficient to corroborate the speculation!"

Zhang Jian listened from the side, and his heart eased even more.

This Jiutian Leizu Dijun is definitely one of our own.

If it were a Dao Lord from another hostile force, he might have noted it down, and possibly even used divine artifacts with the Prison Lord to unlock the spatial seal of the Eternal Ice Prison.

Just needing to add a small note, he would be in great trouble.

After the immortals inspected, Zhang Jian then took the opportunity to retain them, without setting up a banquet to welcome and cleanse the immortals, but was instead refused by the Jiutian Leizu Dijun; the group then directly left the Eternal Immortal Prison.

……

Inside and outside the Eternal Ice Fortress returned to tranquility; indeed, no punishment of the Heavenly Lord was imminent, nor did the immortals change their attitudes, etc.

Actually, since Yu Wang frequently appeared at the Eternal Ice Fortress, the immortals and gods all clearly understand: even if he is not doing well in the Heavenly Court, he has the Three Sovereigns and Five Elders as his backing, so he will not fare poorly elsewhere either, far from being something ordinary immortals can disparage.

Thirty years later, the Heavenly Court issued another edict.

The edict merely reprimanded Zhang Jian, the Lord of the Eternal Immortal Prison, for failing in his loyalty and duty, allowing Jiu Feng to escape; besides that, it deducted his salary for three thousand years, halved his stipend during that period, and extended his term by ten thousand years, with no other penalties.

This scene greatly disappointed many immortals and gods who had long awaited.

What kind of disposition is this?

It is basically painless and itchless.

In the Nine Luminaries Heavenly Realm, the Eastern Azure Defense Prefecture, Chongshan Heavenly Lord and the Tianliang Star Sovereign were both drinking dull wine.

The Tianliang Star Sovereign spoke in a muffled voice.

"Chongshan, I think we should just give up; we can't scheme against him anyway; if we keep causing trouble, we might only bring disgrace upon ourselves!"

The Tianliang Star Sovereign felt somewhat deflated.

Of course, this discouragement mostly comes from the rumor spreading from the depths of Yaochi.

In that rumor, this Eternal Heavenly Lord is fundamentally of the Jade Emperor's bloodline.

The Jade Emperor indeed paid no attention to the mundane descendants who died naturally.

But seeing his own descendants encounter trouble or undergo relocation, he would not fail to secretly add merit in his heart.

What if this Great Heavenly Venerable simply pays no attention on the surface!

After all, he is a divine descendant.

The Tianliang Star Sovereign imagined himself in that position; he certainly would not be indifferent easily.

Chongshan Heavenly Lord said nothing.

The attitude of the Jade Emperor Great Heavenly Venerable is indeed unfathomable to him, and he dare not ponder it.

Actually, deep down, he does not really wish to continue either.

Things cannot be done again and again, then again.

Such a stake is too great.

Just as the Tianliang Star Sovereign does, he dares not gamble on whether the Jade Emperor Great Heavenly Venerable truly pays no attention to this descendant.

What if one day he remembers?

This is the same principle as a heavyweight minister of the Son of Heaven.

Do not look at how he was demoted to the lowest rank; one day, if the Son of Heaven remembers, he can return at any time, anywhere.

"Then let it be; we can also relax a bit!"

Chongshan Heavenly Lord raised his wine cup.

The Tianliang Star Sovereign's heart eased, and he likewise raised his cup.

He laughed: "Since we have decided to let go, let us simply give that Eternal Heavenly Lord a gift; I recall he has a small family under his command, with many immortals awaiting appointment, waiting for the Heavenly Court's internal selection; fortunately, there are still many positions in my Dipper Department's constellation!"

Chongshan Heavenly Lord nodded slightly, his expression also showing some sigh.

……

Eternal Ice Fortress, three thousand years passed silently like flowing water.

During these three thousand years, Zhang Jian remained in the Eternal Ice Fortress, never leaving.

During this time, he has been consolidating his cultivation; after severing fate, his cultivation advanced rapidly in this period, while also contemplating and elevating the two great Dao fruits of Nine Abyss and State.

Among these two Dao fruits, the Nine Abyss Dao fruit is undergoing transformation, where the Nine Abyss ancestral Qi is gradually forming completely.

With the heart's burden gone, everything went smoothly.

Over the course of three thousand years, the Three Emperors' Heavenly Realm also successfully refined a brand-new eternal immortal treasure.

Unexpectedly, after consuming three pieces of heavenly and earthly treasures and fragments of the Profound Dark Bone Staff, the refined Profound Dark Immortal Treasure turned out to be as high as fifth rank.

A fifth-rank eternal immortal treasure.

This is already close to a postnatal spirit treasure.

Even Zhang Jian, upon hearing of it, couldn't help but feel reluctant.

To place such a supreme treasure into the Eternal Immortal Prison would be a waste of heavenly bounty.

But for the sake of the Profound Dark Divine Position, Zhang Jian could only endure the heartache and fill the gap, hoping only that Bai Li Ying would not waste his painstaking efforts.

This replacement occurred silently and without notice.

Of course, prior to this, Zhang Jian had used the Map of Mountains and Rivers to conceal his actions from the perception of the Ice Fortress Immortals.

Even if the Ice Fortress were turned upside down, the immortals would notice nothing.

After accomplishing this, good news followed closely.

Not long after, the Tongshan Dao Lineage sent word that Zhang Zhao had submitted his 'résumé' to the Purple Micro Emperor's Mansion and was accepted, earning him an interview opportunity at the Purple Micro Emperor's residence.

One year later, Zhang Zhao successfully joined the Purple Micro Emperor's Mansion, becoming one of the Purple Micro Left Clerks under the Purple Micro Emperor—a position of mid-to-low rank among celestial officials.

Though it was merely the celestial awareness of a mid-to-low rank celestial official, this was nonetheless the Purple Micro Emperor's Mansion.

The Heavenly Emperor's residence, where officials with authority and other departments differ entirely.

For this, Zhang Jian even took a special leave to return to the Fifth Layer of the Upper Realm, the Eternal Heavenly Sovereign's Mansion, to celebrate with Zhang Zhao.

However, only afterward did Zhang Jian learn that Zhang Zhao seemed to have gained the favor of several Primordial Star Lords.

Among them were the very Primordial Star Lords he had offended in Yaochi.

Furthermore, several of these Star Lords were holding a banquet in the Central Heavenly Realm, inviting Zhang Jian to visit the Department of Combat as a guest.

Zhang Jian understood the full situation, pondered briefly, and naturally agreed.

These Primordial Star Lords were each ancient gods of the Heavenly Court, with countless connections and influence; though he had strong backing, since they had extended a ladder, he naturally descended along with it.

Moreover, Zhang Zhao's successful entry into the Purple Micro Emperor's Mansion was indeed a cause for joy.

Given this, there was no longer any need to quarrel.

Having one more friend is better than having one more enemy.

……

Not long afterward, Zhang Jian returned once more to the Eternal Ice Fortress.

After residing in the Eternal Ice Fortress for twelve thousand years, Zhang Jian gradually felt his Nine Nether Ancestral Qi taking shape, as the Nine Nether Ancestral Qi Dao Fruit replaced the Nine Nether Ancestral Dao Qi Dao Fruit.

On that day, a vast Nine Nether Divine Light emanated from the Eternal Ice Crystal Divine Hall, drawing the attention of immortals within and without the Ice Fortress.

This power was extraordinarily astonishing.

Within the Eternal Ice Crystal Great Hall, Zhang Jian's aura at that moment resembled the depths of the Nine Nether Abyss, with a formidable power flashing around him, as if the dark side of the earth had condensed upon his form, coalescing into a terrifying Nine Nether Void that devoured all things.

The earth can bear all living beings, yet it can also devour every living spirit.

With the initial formation of the Nine Nether Ancestral Qi Dao Fruit, Zhang Jian felt no backlash from the Netherworld Earth's heavenly retribution, and his eyes flickered slightly.

It appeared that his thousands of years of effort had finally taken effect.

Once the Nine Nether Ancestral Qi emerged, the next would be the State and Ancestral Qi.

Regarding the State and Ancestral Qi, Zhang Jian felt even more confident.

At this time, his mood was good.

Soon he gathered his mind and continued his secluded cultivation.

But three hundred years later, he was awakened by a strange, icy divine power fluctuation from beside him.

At that moment, a vast and icy divine power suddenly emerged from the side hall, beginning to surge mightily, sweeping through the Eternal Ice Fortress, the Eternal Forbidden Zone, and even the Central Heavenly Realm and the depths of the myriad heavens' void.