Chapter 454: Supreme at a Hundred

Yet as the gods and demons gazed upon it, they felt the supreme name on the stele had blurred—clear to the eye yet strangely indistinct, a profound contradiction.

It was as if the celestial fate had been shrouded in dust, beyond the sight of ordinary mortals.

The name of such an existence could not be glimpsed by gods or demons; to look was only to see obscurity.

The gods and demons reluctantly abandoned their attempt and turned to the names below, where they immediately saw the characters “Qingyun.”

They had underestimated this young man named Qingyun.

Before televisions, in livestreams, among all present—every heart thought the same.

They knew ascending the Ninth Peak was formidable, and that only Qingyun and Kamikawa Mitsu had reached it in a thousand years, but that didn’t mean none had before—there must have been others.

After all, this was a place capable of nurturing the Supreme.

Thus, Qingyun was powerful, but that did not mean he was powerful within the Ji Xia Academy.

For some reason, many minds conjured the image of Kamikawa Mitsu.

Kamikawa Mitsu stood in the first row; Qingyun stood in the second.

So the Great Saint of the Vast Heavens asked: “Qingyun Senior, how do you compare with Kamikawa Mitsu?”

They differed by only one row—surely the gap wasn’t great.

The posture of the Supreme is merely one manifestation of talent; it does not represent everything. After all, there have been those with inferior talent who reached the Supreme—wasn’t He the one said to have attained the Supreme from the stature of a floating duckweed? Beyond Him, countless worlds have seen mortals achieve immortality, even gods and demons.

Talent only means one starts stronger than others; it does not guarantee surpassing them in the future.

Without effort, even the finest talent is wasted.

Today’s world has many living examples: those who showed extraordinary promise as children, yet vanished into obscurity under parental indulgence or their own arrogance.

In their view, Kamikawa Mitsu’s placement in the first row was largely due to his Supreme talent.

The second row may lack Supreme talent, but its quality is certainly not poor; their future achievements will surely be extraordinary—immortality is likely the baseline, and Qingyun here is proof: he is about to attain immortality.

He also looks very young, though his exact age is unknown, concealed by some immortal artifact.

As soon as the Great Saint of the Vast Heavens spoke.

Even the celestial clouds and divine radiance above seemed to freeze.

Even Qingyun’s calm composure froze instantly.

Everyone was stunned, exchanging bewildered glances.

It seemed… they’d asked a question they shouldn’t have.

Long silence.

Then Qingyun smiled lightly.

“Senior Kamikawa isn’t merely high in talent—he has merged with the radiant sun. Compared to him, I am but a tiny insect gazing up from the earth. What’s there to compare?”

Instantly, a tidal wave erupted.

Everyone: “!!!!!!”

On the Ninth Peak, in the village, before televisions—many, including numerous great immortals and demons, stood up at once.

Their faces betrayed uncontrollable shock.

Qingyun’s words were indirect yet blunt; all understood their meaning clearly.

He meant that compared to Kamikawa Mitsu, he was garbage.

Where’s your nonchalance? Your arrogance? Your second-row posture? You’re a figure on the verge of attaining immortality—where’s your confidence in that power?

Can’t you just stop being such a coward?

They drew another sharp breath—could the gap between second and first row be this vast?!

Yet the junior disciple, seemingly indignant, blurted out: “If Qingyun Senior carried Chiyou’s bloodline, he might not be inferior to them.”

“Silence!”

Qingyun snapped sharply.

Seeing his junior’s wounded expression, he softened his tone.

“How dare you speak lightly of Senior Kamikawa? Not even considering his bloodline or the Kamikawa family’s background—he is, by his own merit, the most extraordinary prodigy of this generation, and even in ancient, primeval, or primordial times, he would be among the brightest.”

He is a true genius with the potential to become Supreme. Even… anyway, never speak such words again.”

As if recalling something, he fell silent, his expression growing colder. He glanced at the crowd, then walked straight toward the highest immortal mountain.

Everyone remained in shock.

Indeed.

Throughout heaven and earth, past and future.

People like Kamikawa Mitsu are exceedingly rare—unparalleled.

One can never know how high they stand, nor ever estimate their depth or future.

Yet given this, no one would dare underestimate Qingyun—his placement in the second row of the Ji Xia Academy’s black jade stele already revealed his talent, unmatched among all worlds.

Yet many from other realms quietly added Kamikawa Mitsu to their list of beings not to provoke.

“What do you think Qingyun Senior meant by that last remark?”

Unable to suppress his “death-seeking nature,” the Great Saint of the Vast Heavens quietly asked the Heavenly Demon Sword Immortal and the First Immortal Lord of Jiuzhou as they followed Qingyun toward the highest immortal mountain.

“He probably meant one of the Supremes. He said Kamikawa Mitsu has the potential to become Supreme—so his talent must surpass even that one’s, or else he wouldn’t have been given such affirmation.”

“I think the same. Perhaps Qingyun Senior’s words… weren’t his own, but spoken by some great figure within the Ji Xia Academy. Otherwise, with Qingyun Senior’s power, he wouldn’t dare invoke such a figure.”

“Who could it be? Huang Di the Supreme? Fu Xi the Supreme? Nu Wa the Supreme? Or someone else? Surely not the First Sacred Spirit.”

“The First Sacred Spirit is unlikely—he’s an anomaly, too absurd.”

“Precisely because he’s absurd that they compare him to Kamikawa Mitsu. But Kamikawa Mitsu is absurd too—eighteen, suspected to be at least Divine Step Five. By twenty, immortality might not be impossible. A twenty-year-old immortal—my entire lifespan isn’t even a fraction of his.”

If this trend continues, he might reach the pinnacle before a hundred, even… become Supreme.”

At the thought of a Supreme under a hundred, everyone halted, their expressions strangely uneasy.

A Supreme under a hundred—just imagining it felt like a dream. In the past, they’d have dismissed it as impossible, pure fantasy.

Seeing Kamikawa Mitsu in the first row of the Ji Xia Academy’s black jade stele, hearing Qingyun Senior’s words—they now felt uncertain, sensing Kamikawa Mitsu truly might reach Supreme before a hundred.

The thought stirred their hearts.

A Supreme under a hundred, compared to the First Sacred Spirit who was Supreme from birth, was hardly different—both were monsters among monsters, like cheat codes.

As they pondered, they arrived at the highest immortal mountain.

Silence.

Stillness.

Everyone stared, dumbfounded.

The highest immortal mountain they saw from outside differed entirely from what they now beheld upon ascending it.

An illusion!

What they now stood upon was the true face of the highest immortal mountain.

A colossal gate.

A gate-like barrier, as if it had stood here since primordial times, its top devoid of heaven, utterly clear.

On either side, ninety-nine magnificent pillars soared into the heavens—so thick, truly too thick, too vast and majestic—each suspended with entire worlds, slowly revolving, like ninety-nine celestial Jianmu trees.

Jianmu, a sacred tree revered by ancient Chinese ancestors.

Legend says Jianmu was the bridge connecting heaven, earth, and the divine; emperors like Fu Xi and Huang Di ascended and descended between mortal realm and heavenly court via this sacred ladder.

Above the pillars, layers upon layers of celestial realms stretched endlessly, faintly revealing ancient immortals and colossal deities seated within, radiating primordial, ancient power.

Above the gate, four characters, as if carved into the Dao itself, stunned all who gazed upon them.

“Ji Xia Academy!”

People stood speechless.

…