Chapter 221: Three High-Tier Spells Perfected! The Unlucky Prince Dan! (8K)

Although the Great Zhou has many cave heavens, it is rare for a cave heaven to ascend to a blessed land.

Because the birth of cave heaven worlds occurs on the scale of epochs (hundreds of thousands of years)!

The more than three hundred cave heaven worlds today have all existed since ancient times; no one knows their exact time of origin.

The officials of Great Zhou who calculated fate determined that the Ten Yang Cave Heaven likely emerged fifty thousand years ago, making it, compared to other cave heavens, merely a newborn infant.

"The ten suns blazing in the sky might truly be the work of the Xuantian Sect," Zhao Xing thought inwardly, "during the Liangzhi era, the Xuantian Sect caused great upheaval in the Guangling Cave Heaven… but this time, with the Ten Yang Cave Heaven, I've only just learned of it—what a major discovery."

"No wonder that mysterious palace felt familiar—it's Xuantian Sect style."

In his past life, he had joined the Xuantian faction; the architectural style of the Fangwaizong Sect differed considerably from that of the Great Zhou.

Following this hypothesis and drawing on his past-life experience, Zhao Xing quickly reached a conclusion: "The Ten Yang Cave Heaven was conquered—during the late Dingxin era's expansion wars, the Mingwu Hou of the Tiger-Jiao Army and the Mingwei Hou of the Mingjia Army discovered this unclaimed cave heaven."

"Records say it was seized from the Southern Barbarians, but… the Xuantian Sect may also have once been the masters of this cave heaven, just as they were with Guangling Cave Heaven."

"That mysterious palace was very likely left behind by ancient Xuantian Sect, yet remained undiscovered all this time."

"Even… this cave heaven was deliberately allowed to be conquered by the Mingwu Hou and others!"

"Why would they do this?" Zhao Xing calculated with his fingers, but then the cave heaven trembled violently.

Clearly, calculating this matter demanded a heavy cost—but the backlash was absorbed by the cave heaven itself.

Even so, Zhao Xing could not deduce anything; the spell simply failed to hold.

But this alone revealed much; relying on his past-life experience, Zhao Xing continued speculating, until a bold idea suddenly flashed in his mind: "The Xuantian Sect has laid a long-term plan for the Ten Yang Cave Heaven, and the Ten Yang Cave Heaven lies near the Nine Heavens' Response Yuan Palace—they've always sought to overthrow the Great Zhou. Is this a display of strength?"

"Who are they showing it to? Emperor Jing? Perhaps not just enemies… but allies too…" Zhao Xing's pupils contracted sharply, "Liang Wang!"

At this thought, Zhao Xing's mind cleared instantly.

"No wonder in my past life Liang Wang dared to rebel!"

"This display of strength by the Xuantian Sect must have given him considerable courage."

"The Military Realm upholds the Great Zhou's rule; if even the Military Realm can be shaken, Liang Wang—who already harbored disloyal intentions—was stirred to action."

"Add to that the failure in pacifying the Southern Barbarians… all these factors drove Liang Wang to act."

In his past life, Zhao Xing never fully understood Liang Wang's rebellion.

You're so weak—why rebel against your own brother?

Where did he get the courage?

If this hypothesis is correct, that courage came from the Fangwaizong Sect.

Reaching these conclusions, Zhao Xing felt a small shock.

"The ancient Gushen Sect's planning truly runs deep—this is, in essence, a form of future forecasting."

In that moment, many insights regarding fate-based spells surged into his heart.

Zhao Xing did not continue probing further into this matter.

Because he dared not.

At this moment, his Five-Finger Destiny had broken through—he saw, in this starry expanse, countless "threads" stretching toward him.

His Karma Soul also stirred with an inexplicable unease, as if watched.

Zhao Xing stared at this sight and was instantly startled.

"I can't calculate any further—I've already alerted certain entities."

For such high-tier realms, with schemes laid over millennia, even if I cannot deduce their plans, I still alert them.

Fortunately, the circumstances here are unusual; otherwise, Zhao Xing would never have dared to speculate.

"Destiny is the blade—cut!"

Zhao Xing pointed a finger; Jin Guang flashed, severing every thread reaching toward him.

As the threads snapped, the sensation of unease vanished.

"Good thing I'm inside the cave heaven's gate—my Five-Finger Destiny has broken through; I can now conceal my traces," Zhao Xing thought inwardly.

Entering the gate to forecast the future, his Five-Finger Destiny achieved a major breakthrough—it has now reached the high-tier spell level.

And he now possesses two high-tier secret techniques.

【Destiny as Blade: High-tier Fate Spell】

【Progress: High-tier Perfect】

【Effect: Destiny as Blade—severs fate calculations】

【Destiny Mysterious Concealment: High-tier Fate Spell】

【Progress: High-tier Perfect】

【Effect: Conceals one's own fate and severs karmic observation】

"No wonder the Ten Thousand Methods Tianmen—directly achieves high-tier perfection."

Zhao Xing immediately activated 【Destiny Mysterious Concealment】.

"Hum~"

Starlight fell upon Zhao Xing, as if draping him in a thin veil.

"With the power of the Ten Yang Cave Heaven, Destiny Mysterious Concealment ensures that even after I leave the gate, I cannot be calculated—unless someone uses something like the Creation Disc to specifically target me," Zhao Xing thought inwardly.

"But such a possibility is extremely remote."

The multitudes are like ants.

Just now, it was as if two giants—the Southern Barbarians and the Great Zhou—were fighting, and an ant accidentally wandered into the battlefield.

The giants glanced, saw the ant, and before they could focus, it vanished—returned to the ant colony.

At this point, the giants would never crouch down with a magnifying glass to hunt for a single ant.

"Still not safe enough."

Zhao Xing was extremely cautious—he immediately sealed this memory using the Great Dream of Spring and Autumn, and imposed a timed lock upon it.

Zhao Xing sealed all speculation regarding the Xuantian Sect and the Liang Wang, including other possible hidden memories of past lives.

The seal is set to lift in six months; by then, the Ten Yang Cave Heaven incident should be over.

Only when certain specific conditions are triggered, or when entering a dream, can one recall them.

"This is a high-stakes game—I'm too weak to join."

Knowing these secrets, Old Master Zhao has no intention of taking action.

He only wants to gain some benefits and protect those he cares about, like Old Chen, Long Xiao, Xia Jing—those close to him.

In terms of grand events, the few of them are merely "ants"; the death of one or two ants won't draw the attention of the giants—Dazhou, the Southern Barbarians, or the sects.

"This is another kind of stealing fate to alter destiny," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "In the future projections I just saw, the scenes involving Old Chen appeared over thirty million times; in those thirty million futures, this guy died over twenty million times."

Yes, Old Chen's fortune has improved, but this disaster in the Ten Yang Cave Heaven kills even fifth-rank cultivators; even Xia Jing and Long Xiao face a thirty to forty percent chance of death—so it's normal for Old Chen's probability to be higher.

"Seal!"

After making the arrangements, Zhao Xing swept his hands across his eyes.

Moments later, his gaze turned vacant.

At this moment, his memories of the Xuantian Sect, the mysterious palace, and the Liang Wang gradually faded.

"Huh? Why do I feel like I've forgotten something?" Zhao Xing stared at his hands, frowning deeply.

Moments later, Zhao Xing's frown eased: "I must have foreseen something, and deliberately let some things fade."

Zhao Xing realized that if he actively resisted this "fading" force, he could recall them.

But he didn't do it, because he suspected he wouldn't seal his own memories without reason.

"Hum~"

At that moment.

A tiny speck of light suddenly appeared in the starry sky, catching Zhao Xing's attention.

"Huh? Why is someone spying on me again?"

"Wait—why did I say 'again'?"

Zhao Xing tilted his head, gazing at the observer beyond the stars.

The thread was thin, but magnified, it resembled a black worm—with a dragon's head.

"Compared to previous spying, this is far too weak. Hmm? Previous?"

Zhao Xing understood this was the seal preventing him from recalling, so he stopped dwelling on it.

He casually unleashed 【Heaven's Mandate Like a Blade】.

On the journey to Dao Feng Mountain, inside Young Master Dan's pavilion-ship.

Liang Ruohai stared at the black-and-white compass; in his eyes now floated a starry sky, beneath which sat a blurred figure in meditation.

"It must be this person who severed the Young Master's fortune," Liang Ruohai pushed harder, trying to see more clearly.

But before his eyes lay a barrier, spreading across the entire starry sky; no matter how he strained, he could not penetrate it.

At that moment, the figure beneath the stars suddenly lifted its head and tilted it.

Still, his face remained unseen, yet he raised his hand.

"Damn!" Liang Ruohai felt dread, and immediately tried to end the divination.

But it was too late—

"Crack-crack-crack~"

The jade bones placed upon the black-and-white compass shattered in an instant.

"Boom!"

A floating dragon bone exploded instantly.

"Sssss~" Immediately after, the black dragon's blood beside the compass evaporated.

"Boom~"

The black-and-white compass shattered completely.

But the backlash's residual force remained terrifying!

"Puff~"

Liang Ruohai instantly snatched the knife beside him and severed his right arm, tossing it onto the area where the compass had been.

"Hum~"

Without a sound, his entire right arm turned to powder.

Yet the backlash had not ceased!

"What? This isn't enough?" Liang Ruohai gritted his teeth and severed his own legs.

"Hum~"

His legs met the same fate as his right arm—dissolving silently into powder.

But it still wasn't enough!

"Heaven's Mandate backlash—it's taking my life…" Liang Ruohai sighed, then slashed his chest with his remaining hand.

He murmured incantations under his breath.

"With my blood, I repay Heaven's lifespan."

"Gurgle-gurgle~"

His heart's blood surged, coalescing into Liang Ruohai's likeness before him.

It fell upon the area where the shattered compass had been.

"Sssss~"

The blood evaporated instantly, vanishing without a trace.

Thus, the backlash finally came to an end.

"Teacher? Teacher!"

Ji Dan, hearing the commotion, came to the Viewing Platform. Upon seeing the scene before him, his face changed drastically.

He rushed forward quickly, supporting Liang Ruohai who was about to fall.

"Teacher, what has happened to you?!" Ji Dan was utterly shocked.

For at this moment, Liang Ruohai's legs were gone, his right hand was missing, his face was covered in wrinkles, and his hair was entirely white, like a dying old man.

It must be known that Liang Ruohai was only one hundred and seventy years old; for a Fifth Rank, this age was still prime!

How could he have become like this now?

Ji Dan placed his hand on Liang Ruohai's wrist, sent Yuan Qi into the Origin Dantian to probe, and immediately his heart grew half cold.

Liang Ruohai's Origin Dantian vortex was already filled with mottled cracks, and the bone textures were the same.

Everything seemed to presage that Liang Ruohai was truly in a state of old age, rather than having temporarily been poisoned or struck by some spell.

"Teacher, Teacher." Ji Dan was very anxious, roaring: "Quickly, bring people over, move all the medicinal herbs from the Pill Vault here!"

Liang Ruohai was the teacher who had been with him the longest; he rarely saw his father, and when he did, the Prince's identity overshadowed that of a father. To him, his father was like a gloomy sea.

To Ji Dan, Liang Ruohai was both teacher and father.

"Young Master need not trouble himself." Liang Ruohai's voice was hoarse. "I am already running on empty; I can live at most ten more years."

"If not for my Fifth Rank official position and the protection of the imperial court, I would likely be dead by now."

"This kind of backlash cannot be repaired by any pill."

"Teacher..." Tears flowed from Ji Dan's eyes. He understood this was the backlash suffered by the teacher for divining the Heavenly Secrets on his behalf.

"Dan, listen to me." Liang Ruohai spoke with great difficulty. "Turn the ship around immediately; do not go east any further."

"Teacher." Ji Dan wiped his tears, his face showing a fierce expression. "Please tell me, who is plotting against me? Is it the Nineteenth, or the Thirteenth? Or the Heir Apparent?!"

Liang Ruohai shook his head: "I do not know."

"Young Master, Mr. Liang..." At this moment, the martial artists under his command carried boxes of pills up to the Viewing Platform. Seeing this scene, they could not help but be greatly startled.

"Listen to me," Liang Ruohai said. "Turn around."

Seeing his subordinates arrive, Ji Dan immediately gathered his composure and stopped losing his temper: "Yes. The tower ship will turn around immediately. No one is to go to the Dao Feng Mountain Range again!"

"You all help Mr. Liang down to rest."

"Yes."

"Brotherly bonds are not even as good as the position of Heir Apparent..." After everyone had left, Ji Dan's eyes were full of desolation. A moment later, his eyes were filled with violence: "Thirteenth, Nineteenth, Heir Apparent, you all just wait!"

Deep in the Southern Wasteland, on a Shenshan illuminated by brilliant Jin Guang, a temple stood.

Inside the temple was a statue wearing a red Daoist robe and holding a fly-whisk.

"Voom~"

The statue suddenly came to life, gazing into the distance.

Blood Spirit Venerable calculated with his fingers, and suddenly a wisp of flame appeared at his fingertip.

"Hmm?" Blood Spirit Venerable wiped it with his fly-whisk, yet the flame still jumped ten times before the backlash vanished.

"It is related to the Town Spirit Underground Palace. Could it have been discovered?"

"No." Blood Spirit Venerable shook his head. "It is not the power of the Creation Compass."

The power of the backlash seemed massive, and its level was also very high.

But the source person was very weak, like a tiny ant, making it impossible to see clearly.

"An ant crawling to the edge of the chessboard, lifting a stone billions of times heavier than itself?" Blood Spirit Venerable murmured: "Interesting. Then why did it not throw it into the chessboard?"

"Whatever is done must leave a trace; let us calculate again." Blood Spirit Venerable calculated once more, only to find his divination spell did not hold.

Flame appeared at his fingers again.

For Liang Ruohai, a backlash that meant death was, for Blood Spirit Venerable, merely a finger catching fire.

"Huff~" The flame was extinguished again. Blood Spirit Venerable looked at his fingertip, lost in thought.

The stone was gone, and the ant was gone too.

But the trace the ant had left earlier gave him a faint sense of familiarity.

"Who could it be?" Blood Spirit Venerable muttered to himself.

Zhao Xing had no idea at all that the Heavenly Mandate Like a Blade he casually cast had caused Liang Ruohai to reach a state of running on empty.

Nor did he know that Blood Spirit Venerable, on a whim, had actually specifically calculated him.

However, his previous protective measures were done thoroughly, preventing Blood Spirit Venerable from gaining any useful information.

At this moment, Zhao Xing had already exited beyond the Tianmen.

He appeared in the sea of clouds.

Zhao Xing, lost in thought, flew back to the Qilin Flying Boat.

Long Xiao was already on the Flying Boat.

"Why did you come out so early?" Long Xiao asked.

"My Dao Heart is firm, unaffected by temptation, and my goal is very clear," Zhao Xing said. He had come specifically to break through with the Five Fingers Heavenly Mandate, so naturally he wasted no time.

Zhao Xing sized up Long Xiao: "You are good. You arrived late, yet came out early."

When Zhao Xing's Straw Man Disciple led Murong Xue and Ji Zixuan to arrive, Long Xiao and Mountain Cat were still absorbing energy in the Lingxiu Hot Spring.

When Ji Zixuan finished absorbing, Zhao Xing had already found the location of the Tianmen.

By then, Long Xiao had also set off long ago, on his way to the Cloud Gate Thirty-Six Strange Peaks.

The Tianmen opens at the seventh mark of the Mao hour. Long Xiao arrived at the second mark of the Chen hour, seeing a Straw Man Disciple left by Zhao Xing on the Flying Boat.

He arrived two marks late, yet unexpectedly came out this early.

Long Xiao said proudly, "Hah, you think only you have a firm Dao heart? Between me and Old Chen, which one of us hasn't fought our way out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood?"

"Cloud Marquis is awesome!" Zhao Xing gave a thumbs-up. "What did you gain?"

"The Slaughter Sword Art has reached perfection, and I have even created a sword technique of my own." Long Xiao couldn't wait to show off. "Come, let me show you."

"Great." Zhao Xing was very supportive.

"Look behind you." Long Xiao signaled Zhao Xing to turn around.

Zhao Xing turned his head and saw that at some point, three cloud-white illusory swords had appeared behind him.

"This..." Zhao Xing was somewhat surprised. "Is it the Shenxiao Sword Art?!"

At this moment, Long Xiao's sword-controlling method was already very similar to the version he had seen in his past life.

Although still immature, it had completely broken away from the incomplete version of the "Slaughter Sword Art" to forge its own Dao!

"Eh? Shenxiao Sword Art? That's a good name, very domineering," Long Xiao said. "I just created it and hadn't named it yet... hmm, let's use this name."

Long Xiao's previous sword manual was an incomplete sword technique obtained from an ancient tomb, named the "Slaughter Sword Technique," which contained the Geng Metal Sword-Controlling Style, the Sword Qi Condensation Method, and four killing moves.

However, that was the incomplete version; what Long Xiao was wielding now was the sword manual that truly belonged to him.

"In this life, I was the one who named the Shenxiao Sword Art?" Zhao Xing paused, feeling an indescribable strangeness.

"Heh, don't say that. Inside the Tianmen, it was really strange; many swords were flying back and forth, and every single one seemed ten or a hundred times stronger than the Slaughter Sword Art." Long Xiao controlled the cloud-white illusory swords to swim around. "I wonder if Little Xia and Little Ji could withstand the temptation."

"They should be able to," Zhao Xing said, looking toward the location of the Tianmen's entrance.

By now, he could no longer see it, because everyone could only enter once, and after that, it became invisible.

Moreover, what each person saw upon entering was different; Zhao Xing had been in a starry sky, while Long Xiao had been in a sword pavilion.

These were scenes derived from the methods each person most desired to comprehend within their hearts.

They waited another two double-hours.

At the beginning of the Si hour, Chen Shijie emerged third.

"Old Chen, what did you gain?"

Chen Shijie smiled and said, "Not bad. I now have nine high-grade methods, one of which has broken through to the seventh transformation, while the rest have all reached minor perfection."

"Wow, that's so exaggerated!" Long Xiao's eyes widened. "Your progress is huge; you say that's just 'not bad'? That's incredibly strong!"

"He was just waiting for you to praise him; you shouldn't have asked," Zhao Xing laughed.

Old Chen's high-grade methods had not reached perfection, but their quantity had changed, with improvements being relatively even.

But this was a personal choice.

Chen Shijie himself was also a fairly comprehensive Military Agrarian Official.

"Zhao Xing, what about you?" Chen Shijie asked. "Speak up; it gives you a chance to show off too."

"Me? I'm just average," Zhao Xing said. "Except that only three high-grade methods reached perfection."

"Damn!" Long Xiao's eyes widened. "So you were the one who gained the most!"

"Three methods, perfection?" Chen Shijie was also shocked.

How difficult is it for a high-grade method to reach perfection?

Even mastering a high-grade method at the sixth rank is quite rare.

Mastering a high-grade method at the sixth rank with perfection is even rarer.

Many at the fifth rank have not even mastered a perfect-level high-grade method.

"I'm an exception; I just got lucky," Zhao Xing said.

It was indeed luck.

Because the methods most suitable for comprehension inside the Tianmen were those of the Fate category!

Other spells and Wu Ji did not have such exaggerated improvements!

The Cave Heaven bore the cost of deduction and infinitely amplified the deduction ability, naturally leading to a massive improvement.

Such a thing would only occur when a Cave Heaven ascended, naturally forming a Dao Method Tianmen.

Waiting for several thousand or ten thousand years, one might not encounter such an opportunity even once.

As for the third spell, it was 【Instant Primordial】.

This high-grade method, a Benwo Sect high-grade method, had also been maxed out.

This was because the casting of 【Instant Primordial】 itself was very compatible with comprehension within the Tianmen.

When releasing 【Instant Primordial】, the inner world of plants Zhao Xing saw was similar in effect to the starry sky he saw inside the Tianmen.

As for other spells, they had also improved slightly, but the main ones were 【Fate Like a Blade】, 【Fate Mysterious Concealment】, and 【Instant Primordial】.

At the end of the Si hour, Xia Jing also appeared in the sea of clouds.

"How was it, Young Master? What did you gain?" Long Xiao asked curiously; Xia Jing was also a martial artist, and he was quite concerned about the improvement of the martial artist profession.

"Sigh." Xia Jing let out a sigh.

"What's wrong?" Zhao Xing asked strangely. "Did you waste your time inside?"

"No, I feel I comprehended the wrong thing," Xia Jing said. "Inside, I mastered the Gluttony Consumption Method and the Black Tortoise Shield."

"Gluttony Consumption Method at the seventh layer, Black Tortoise Shield at the ninth transformation."

"But the problem is, neither of these are my main cultivation."

"Damn!" Long Xiao said angrily. "Your ways of showing off are each more unique than the last."

"Hit him!" Zhao Xing couldn't hold back either and joined Long Xiao in beating up Xia Jing.

However, at this moment, a faint earth-yellow light appeared on Xia Jing's body.

Long Xiao and Zhao Xing's punches landed, causing no pain or itch at all; he didn't even move.

"Two great knights, spare my life." A hint of a smile appeared on Xia Jing's lips. "You hit too hard, hahaha."

Mockery, naked mockery.

But Xia Jing now possessed exactly this capability.

"Damn, Heir, you look so deserving of a beating right now."

"You actually sigh? And mock us?" Zhao Xing also gritted his teeth in anger.

"Internal cultivation of the Gluttony-Eating Method, external cultivation of the Black Tortoise Shield; saying he is invincible at the Sixth Rank is not an exaggeration now." Chen Shijie smiled: "You might as well stop scratching his itch."

"Pity, my Green Dragon Transformation of Origin Method hasn't progressed much." Aside from his joy, Xia Jing still felt some regret, "Now my defense is indeed formidable, but my attack may not be worthy of the title 'Invincible at the Sixth Rank'."

At the first quarter of the noon hour, Ji Ji Ziyun also emerged.

He too had made great progress, yet compared to Zhao Xing, Xia Jing, and the other two, Ji Ji Ziyun's progress was slightly inferior.

Because he had just been tempted by the things inside, spending time to delve into some 'false' spells.

In the end, Ji Ji Ziyun only comprehended two high-level spells, and even those were only at the Third Turn realm.

Very few could remain completely untainted by temptation within the Heaven Gate, fully seize the opportunity, and maximize their gains.

Ji Ji Ziyun's case was merely a normal level of harvest.

"Now only Ao Tian remains." Long Xiao looked left and right, "Why hasn't it come out yet?"

"Perhaps it's dazed." Ji Ji Ziyun said, "The spiritual intelligence of a strange beast may not necessarily comprehend the Great Dao."

"Could the mountain cat have been tempted by food inside?" Xia Jing laughed.

"Maybe what he saw inside was all fish." Zhao Xing stared at Xia Jing.

"What are you looking at? This Heir no longer fears fish." Xia Jing said.

"Oh? Then next time I'll be your logistics, planting some hemp-fish fruits."

"Gurgle~" Xia Jing's throat convulsed, his body shivered: "Forget it, Brother Zhao, I was just joking."

"Hahaha."

Next, the five waited on the flying boat for the mountain cat's return.

Strange beasts in this current era possessed few methods of cultivation, relying purely on their innate bloodline talents.

However, the physical bodies and bloodline talents of many strange beasts were stronger than those of humans, so each had its own strengths and weaknesses.

Zhao Xing did not know if entering the Heaven Gate had any effect on strange beasts.

But he did know that in the era of spiritual qi resurgence, the spiritual intelligence of strange beasts rose, allowing them to comprehend the Dao and cultivate on a large scale, and the 'race' of Demon Kin also appeared.

Simultaneously, numerous methods for Demon Kin cultivation emerged.

At the end of the noon hour, the Heaven Gate closed, and Ao Tian meowed from within the clouds.

"Meow-wooo~"

In the sea of clouds, Lei Ting flashed.

Ao Tian walked elegantly through the lightning with feline steps, as if the lightning had substance.

"Hmm? There really is a change?" Ji Ji Ziyun felt extremely curious; comprehending the Dao at the Heaven Gate should not have much effect on strange beasts, yet the mountain cat seemed to have made great progress.

"Impressive." Xia Jing also looked at the mountain cat in amazement, "Commanding Lei Ting, this innate ability is strong enough."

"The mountain cat is a spiritual and exquisite variant, raised by the Mountain God; it seems its spiritual intelligence must be far superior to ordinary strange beasts." Zhao Xing was also somewhat surprised.

"Hahaha, Ao Tian is truly clever." Long Xiao laughed loudly and activated the flying boat to approach.

"Meow-wooo~" The mountain cat let out a cry, jumped onto the boat, and licked its paws to indicate it was hungry.

Zhao Xing waved his hand; the Wen Zhu cabin opened, and food items one by one fell before the mountain cat, immediately piling up like a mountain.

"Meow!" The mountain cat perked up its ears, ran over quickly, and began eating with a crunch-crunch-crunch sound.

After finishing feeding Ao Tian, Zhao Xing said: "Old Chen, Long Xiao, come with me."

He led the two men, walking and stopping on the thirty-six strange peaks, making some arrangements.

"Do you intend to destroy the strange peaks?" Chen Shijie asked.

"Yes." Zhao Xing nodded. "In the coming days, the effect of the Heaven Gate will gradually weaken, but others may still see the gateway."

"What a pity," Long Xiao said.

"Pity what?" Zhao Xing asked in surprise: "Long Xiao, you don't naively think we should leave it for others, do you?"

"No, I was just sighing." Long Xiao shook his head. "If everyone becomes stronger, and competitors become powerful, it is no benefit to us."

Zhao Xing said: "Others are all potential enemies to us; we cannot leave benefits for enemies."

"Furthermore, I did some things inside that cannot be known by anyone; even if there is a slight chance, it must not happen."

Chen Shijie worried: "Now many places have set up Forget-Sorrow Steles; a slaughter is likely to occur."

Zhao Xing took out the Earth Mirror and looked: "Some areas don't even set up Forget-Sorrow Steles, yet they do not prohibit slaughter, specifically arranged for those scions of noble families."

Long Xiao was puzzled: "Why does the imperial court arrange it this way? Aren't they afraid those noble families will continue their hatred after leaving?"

Zhao Xing said calmly: "There are too many thousand-year noble families and old-established dignitaries; why should they be so harmonious with each other? If they unite, do they intend to rebel?"

"Even taking ten thousand steps back, without this event, families destined to feud would still feud, and those destined to ally would still ally."

"Reaching the step of thousand-year noble families, personal emotions can be ignored; interests are the foundation."

"That is the logic." Chen Shijie said, "In the eleventh year of the Jingxin Era, when I first arrived at Nanyang Commandery, the great families within the commandery, the Yang clan and the Liu clan, had a conflict; the two families fought fiercely, even killing several clan members."

"In the fifteenth year, the Yang clan had a clan daughter marry into the Liu clan, because the two families needed to cooperate to develop trade routes."

"If commandery families are like this, let alone those noble families that have existed for a thousand, or even several thousand years."

"It is the same between nations; yesterday they formed an alliance and exchanged hostages, tomorrow they might tear up the treaty, kill the hostages to sacrifice to the banner, and the day after reconcile again, continuing to send hostages over."

"Busy with crowds, coming and going for profit." Zhao Xing stamped his foot, and Jin Guang from a spell sank into the ground. "Let's not talk about this anymore. Old Chen, Long Xiao, get to work."

"Good."

"Boom~"

The thirty-six strange peaks of the Cloud Gate rotated in the sea of clouds; suddenly, four of the peaks trembled violently.

Mountain stones rolled down, and large amounts of water cascaded from the peaks into the abyss below.

The temperature of the four sky islands rose sharply.

"Swish swish swish~"

Three figures flew swiftly away from the mountain, riding flying boats to distance themselves.

In a short while, the four Shanfeng exploded, one after another, and crashed down.

Of the thirty-six strange peaks, only thirty-two remained from now on, returning to an ordinary appearance, with no more divine wonders.

Zhao Xing and Chen Shijie first drained the water veins within the Shanfeng, then used the Volcano Method to continuously open volcanoes on the four Shanfeng.

Within a short time, they caused seven-level earth vein riots in all four Shanfeng in the sky.

Originally, these Shanfeng had no foundation and floated in the sky; now that the earth veins were destroyed, they were easily ruined.

"We have killed four future Spirit Mountains," Chen Shijie said, looking at the explosions ahead.

If not destroyed, these Shanfeng might have become 'Spirit Mountains' in the future!

"Better the mountain dies than I," Zhao Xing said. "Let's go, no need to dwell on it."

"Where to next?" Xia Jing asked, having grown accustomed to asking Zhao Xing for his opinion.

"The Inverted Peak Mountain Range; we cannot stay here any longer," Zhao Xing said. "The Soldier Realm has already begun large-scale land-grabbing here, and I do not wish to join the slaughter for now."

"Both the Extreme Night Sea and the Pengli Lake are options; allow me to calculate first." Zhao Xing pinched his five fingers to calculate, combining the Great Expansion Qi-Gazing Art to observe the fortune pillars of the four of them; whichever direction was favorable, they would go there first.