Chapter 248: Chapter Six: Beyond Divine King

On a vast, desolate plain.

A young boy gazed far off, where an endless river of blood blotted out half the sky.

"I'm already dead, yet Yanfeng Ancient Nation did nothing?" The boy's eyes were cold. "Now that the Black Robe has grown even more arrogant, seizing vast territories and seeking to establish a divine nation rivaling the two ancient nations—I'll see if the two ancient nations will keep enduring."

"Di Qing, Yanfeng's Primogenitor, Lei Ting's Primogenitor—can you three truly endure this?"

The boy thought silently.

He was none other than Di Yuan's reincarnation!

Knowing he lacked sufficient quota to cultivate into a "Ultimate-Level Lifeform," he never returned to the Yanfeng imperial clan. He knew some within the clan wished him dead. If he dared return, his identity… would soon be leaked to the Black Robe.

"Di Qing and the other two may be in seclusion."

"Most of their energy is spent outside; they only emerge from seclusion to rest and relax."

"As for me, what matters most now… is comprehending a complete Dao!" the boy thought. "Relying on others is no match for relying on oneself!"

His true realm was Peak Second Rebirth of a Divine King. Having devoured countless lifeforms to aid his cultivation, he had mastered five Ultimate-Level secret arts—among the most accomplished even among Yanfeng Ancient Nation's imperial lords.

In terms of realm accumulation, he ranked among the top among imperial lords.

In Yanfeng Ancient Nation, those who became "Ultimate-Level Lifeforms" without relying on Hunyuan bloodlines, but only on Hunyuan rarities, generally possessed deeper realm accumulation. Di Yuan, Di Chu, and Di Jiufeng were all like this.

Under normal circumstances, Di Yuan could roam the world unchallenged… until he met Luo Feng, who wielded the Star Tower, and was utterly defeated.

"If I can master more Ultimate-Level secret arts, perhaps I can break through." The boy stepped forward and vanished without a sound.

…

With the establishment of the Silver River Divine Nation, all corners of the Origin Continent watched and waited for the two ancient nations' responses.

Night.

The capital of the Silver River Divine Nation.

"Establishing a divine nation is easy enough, but stabilizing it and standing equal to the two ancient nations? That's still difficult." Luo Feng sat atop a nine-story pavilion, drinking alone. "Given the pride of the two nations' primogenitors, can they truly tolerate the existence of the 'Silver River Divine Nation'? It's still uncertain."

"Ha, I truly look forward to the two primogenitors taking action—it'll test the flaws in my methods." Luo Feng eagerly anticipated clashing with the two primogenitors.

As he studied the deeper runes of the Star Tower, his endless river of blood grew ever more mysterious and terrifying—yet also harder to find worthy opponents.

Even the eight imperial lords working together were insignificant; all imperial lords and sovereigns combined would be useless.

Only Di Qing, the Primogenitor of Dongji Region, and the two ancient nations' primogenitors held any real challenge.

"Master, a guest has arrived." Mo Luo Sa appeared silently beside him.

"I've already sensed him."

Luo Feng looked up toward the distance.

A faint crimson ripple swept across, and a middle-aged man appeared, disheveled.

"I prepared for the two ancient nations to strike. I've kept the Star Tower's domain active at all times—yet the first to come is the Time-Space Old Devil." Luo Feng silently shook his head.

He had never underestimated the two ancient nations—so even the body sitting here… was formed entirely from the endless river of blood.

A single thought could unleash its power!

With continued use, Luo Feng grew ever more adept at wielding the Star Tower.

"Your Majesty's methods are truly formidable," the disheveled middle-aged man smiled as he approached. "This endless river of blood holds infinite secrets of life. It can pierce past and future, seeping into everything—even my temporal reflection cannot evade it."

If it were a complete Life Dao, it would indeed resemble an eternal river of life, piercing past and future.

Luo Feng's current understanding of the Life Dao was only Peak Second Rebirth of a Divine King. Yet the Star Tower's core was the mystery of life. Some of its runes he had fully comprehended—enough to create eight branching techniques. Others he didn't fully understand, but could still wield.

The domain he summoned already reached into past and future; no concept of life could escape its infiltration.

"I've long heard of your name, Time-Space Old Devil," Luo Feng said.

The middle-aged man stared at the silver-robed, golden-masked man before him. With his realm, he could instantly perceive this "silver-robed, golden-masked man" as a conglomerate of unimaginable terror. Should this power erupt, it would obliterate heaven and earth. Within the Origin Continent, he had no equal.

"This Silver River Sovereign must follow the Life Dao—and has surpassed the Divine King level," the Time-Space Old Devil sensed the terrifying power. "Those who walk the Life Dao… grow increasingly elusive the further they advance."

As a Dao-seeker, the Time-Space Old Devil understood well.

The Life Dao excels at survival in its early stages but is weak in killing. Yet the further one advances, the more "mysterious and unpredictable" the Life Dao becomes—because it can penetrate, twist, and destroy the essence of all life.

You cannot kill him, yet he can cripple your power. And you still cannot kill him!

"Yanfeng and Lei Ting have met a troublesome opponent. A being of the Life Dao, under the Origin Continent's power restrictions, is practically invincible," the Time-Space Old Devil felt a touch of malicious delight.

The Origin Continent was the backyard of Yanfeng's Primogenitor and Lei Ting's Primogenitor. Most treasures ultimately ended up in their hands.

The Silver River Sovereign had come to steal their meat.

His competitiveness far surpassed the three alien races by an immense margin.

"Your Majesty should know what the three alien supreme experts most desire," the Time-Space Old Devil said, convinced this masked Silver River Sovereign was a powerful figure from the Origin Continent.

Yet even now, he could not discern the Silver River Sovereign's true identity. "Four treasures," Luo Feng said.

"Yes, mainly the remains of special lifeforms and the secret arts left by Yuan," the Time-Space Old Devil nodded. "I believe your Majesty has a strong chance of obtaining such treasures. I welcome any trade with your Majesty—my terms will surely satisfy you."

In his eyes, the Silver River Sovereign was a being beyond Divine King level, and the treasures he acquired on the Origin Continent must be extraordinary.

This was a major client!

"Take a look at these five artifacts—what can you offer in exchange?" Luo Feng waved his hand, releasing five trophies taken from Di Yuan: a cloak, a Deep Abyss Pearl, armor, battle boots, and gloves.

The Time-Space Old Devil glanced and smiled: "These are the artifacts left behind after Di Yuan's death? Yanfeng's Primogenitor is indeed stingy—what he prepared for his clan's descendants are merely pre-Imperial God artifacts."

"Pre-Imperial God artifacts?" Luo Feng's mind stirred.

Seeing his reaction, the Time-Space Old Devil immediately understood.

Luo Feng nodded. "I've never left the Origin Continent. I know very little."

The Time-Space Old Devil smiled cheerfully. "From Peak Ultimate-Level Divine King to 'beyond Divine King level'—this is a qualitative transformation! Once beyond Divine King level, no Dao guides you. You must grope blindly in darkness."

"You don't know if the path you forge is right or wrong," the Time-Space Old Devil sighed. "Sometimes, even if you take a wrong path, your power still grows. But at some point, countless drawbacks emerge—and you may never advance again."

Original text in view!

Luo Feng nodded.

He knew.

The three realms of Divine King level are guided by Dao.

Beyond Divine King level, one gropes entirely in darkness—everything depends on oneself. Hence, in the Special-Class legacies, cultivators are trained to "create high-level secret arts from low-level foundations," honing their insight so they may advance further in the coming darkness.

"Supreme experts beyond the Divine King level come from countless worlds and follow different schools, so their titles vary," the Time-Space Old Devil said. "Some call it the Imperial God Realm, others the Divine Emperor Realm, Witch Ancestor Realm, or Dao Lord Realm."

"Since bloodline cultivation is the mainstream—simplest and most common—over ninety-nine percent of supreme experts follow the bloodline path," the Time-Space Old Devil said. "Bloodline cultivators usually refer to it as the 'Imperial God Realm,' hence 'Imperial God' is the most common term."

"Imperial God Realm is divided into four steps: Early Imperial God, Mid Imperial God, Late Imperial God, and Imperial God Perfection."

"The so-called 'Dao Lord Realm' is also divided into One-Step Dao Lord, Two-Step Dao Lord, Three-Step Dao Lord, Four-Step Dao Lord."

"Different titles, but all divided into four steps."

"Four steps forged in darkness! The fourth step shares one common name—Semi-Hunyuan Realm."

The Time-Space Old Devil had no qualms sharing this knowledge. "Semi-Hunyuan Realm represents a limit. Only by breaking this limit… can one become a Hunyuan Lifeform. Yuan, for instance, was an immensely powerful Hunyuan Lifeform."

Luo Feng understood.

Beyond Divine King level, forging four steps in darkness leads to Semi-Hunyuan level? Beyond that, only Hunyuan Lifeforms?

"These artifacts' mysteries determine their level," the Time-Space Old Devil said. "Your five artifacts are all Early Imperial God relics—well-crafted, suitable for Divine Kings."

"Truthfully, these relics are useless to me," the Time-Space Old Devil smiled at Luo Feng. "But for our first trade, I'll help your Majesty. I happen to have one Late Imperial God life-related artifact—I believe it will suit you."

"Exchange this armor and this pearl," the Time-Space Old Devil said.

Luo Feng listened.

Among the Early Imperial God relics, the armor's value far exceeded that of the gloves, boots, and cloak—only the Deep Abyss Pearl matched it.

The Time-Space Old Devil had clearly chosen the two most valuable items.

"Don't worry—I won't cheat you. When you leave the Origin Continent, you'll realize… I'm the one who took the loss," the Time-Space Old Devil smiled.

"Fine. I accept the trade," Luo Feng said without hesitation.

Honestly, Luo Feng had little regard for Di Yuan's five artifacts.

The Infinite Space Vault could also exchange for artifacts. According to their descriptions, many could be used up to the Semi-Hunyuan level—for example, one worth 50, 00 reward points that reduced all attacks below Semi-Hunyuan Lifeform level by ninety percent.

From those descriptions, some artifacts seemed conceptual in nature. Luo Feng guessed… they might have been casually forged by Hunyuan Lifeforms, designed for Imperial God-level users.

Compared to those, Di Yuan's five artifacts were clearly inferior.

"Within the Infinite Space, whether legacies or artifacts, their value is extremely high. The only problem: reward points are too hard to earn," Luo Feng thought. "My reward points must be used with extreme caution."

The Time-Space Old Devil smiled. "I'll send a manifestation to deliver the artifacts."

He carried no precious items when he came to meet Luo Feng.

He transported his treasures across vast distances to the Origin Continent, hiding them carefully—only revealing a portion for each trade.

Luo Feng sat patiently, waiting.

Soon—

Another manifestation of the Time-Space Old Devil arrived, bringing the traded items.

(End of Chapter)