Chapter 238: A Difficult Situation

Chapter 238: A Difficult Situation

October 21, 2024

"Your Majesty, this is the collection of fragments from the Sunlight Mirror!"

Inside the imperial palace, Gu Yi respectfully handed a golden box to Gu Yang.

The latter opened the box, revealing several fragments lying quietly inside. Three of the fragments were larger, while the remaining five were smaller.

Even as fragments, Gu Yang could still sense the terrifying aura of a Sage emanating from them.

"You have done well in this matter. I hereby grant you one of these larger fragments of the Holy Artifact."

Gu Yang handed one of the larger fragments to Gu Yi, who was deeply grateful.

Holy Artifact Fragments

Even though these were fragments of a broken Holy Artifact, they still contained formidable divine power.

For ordinary cultivators, these Holy Artifact fragments could still be quite useful.

This was why Gu Yang had been collecting numerous Holy Artifact fragments.

Back when the Sunlight Mirror was shattered outside Xing'an County, Gu Yang secretly ordered people to gather the fragments. Unfortunately, the Sunlight Mirror had scattered far and wide, and many people were after this supreme treasure.

Thus, so far, Gu Yang had managed to collect fewer than ten fragments.

However, despite the small number, the varying sizes of the fragments meant that Gu Yang now possessed roughly one-third of the Sunlight Mirror.

If a master alchemist could be found, it might be possible to reforge all the fragments and completely restore the Sunlight Mirror.

However, finding such a master alchemist was no easy task, and the cost of restoring the Sunlight Mirror would likely be substantial.

Moreover, with the Divine Phoenix Tower in his possession, Gu Yang had no intention of reforging the Sunlight Mirror.

"Additionally, I need you to send secret agents to the Nine Provinces Martial Academy to discreetly observe talented cultivators. Investigate their backgrounds and their loyalty to the court. If their backgrounds are clean and they are loyal to the court, compile a list and bring it to me!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

Gu Yi nodded.

"Furthermore—"

Gu Yang paused, looking out of the study with a serious expression.

"Find a way to send a group of people into the Five Domains of the Ancient Realm. I need to gather all the information about the Ancient Realm. I will have a royal advisor accompany them!"

Royal Advisor

This naturally referred to people like Gu Wu, who were originally elders of the Gu Family Village. Now, serving the court, Gu Yang had given them the additional title of royal advisor.

The Gu Family Village was the Gu Family Village, and the Divine Martial Dynasty was the Divine Martial Dynasty. Although they were closely related, they could not be conflated in certain matters.

With a large number of Eastern Domain cultivators entering the Nine Provinces and many fierce beasts in the Ancient Beast Mountains being slain, the danger of the Ancient Beast Mountains had naturally decreased.

Moreover, with a Ninth-Stage Divine Transformation Realm cultivator leading the group, crossing the Ancient Beast Mountains would not be a problem.

The reason for this was that the Nine Provinces had already been exposed to the other forces in the Ancient Realm. Even if the Divine Martial Dynasty took no action, it would still be affected by the other forces.

Given this, Gu Yang needed to prepare in advance.

"Your subordinate will follow your orders!"

Gu Yi bowed in acknowledgment.

Gu Yang continued, "Finally, send all the spatial rings and spatial bags collected from the Eastern Domain cultivators, especially those with restrictions, to the Gu Family Village. Have Father break the restrictions on them. As for those without restrictions, bring them to me."

The battle at Xing'an County had claimed many powerful cultivators, including those at the Dao Palace Realm and the Divine Transformation Realm. Some of these cultivators, though fallen, had left restrictions on their spatial bags and rings.

These restrictions varied in strength, so Gu Yang had them all sent to Gu Qingfeng to handle.

Regardless of the strength of the restrictions, with his father's capabilities, breaking them would not be a problem.

Gu Yi accepted the order.

Within half a day, he had delivered over a thousand spatial bags and rings to Gu Yang.

Although only those at the Dao Palace Realm could nurture a spirit, understanding the true meaning of things meant having a basic grasp of divine consciousness, making it easy to open these items.

After a long while, Gu Yang could not hide his smile.

"Excellent, excellent! With such a collection, the Divine Martial Dynasty will surely flourish!"

He was genuinely excited.

Among the over a thousand spatial bags and rings, there were no fewer than five hundred cultivation techniques and legacies. Even excluding the duplicates, the variety was more than a hundred.

The Divine Martial Dynasty's greatest problem is the scarcity of cultivation techniques. Truly top-tier cultivation methods are extremely rare.

Gu Yang, up until now, only possesses the Lifeng True Scripture and the Divine Sun Scripture created by Gu Qingfeng.

The former is a cultivation method for the Divine Transformation Realm, while the latter is a method that directly leads to the Dao Palace Realm.

For an ordinary force, having a cultivation method that can lead to the Ninth Level of the Dao Palace Realm is sufficient for their lineage to thrive.

However, for a dynasty, this is far from enough.

Not everyone can be compatible with the same cultivation method. An ordinary force can select disciples to cultivate, but a dynasty must spread its martial might across the land, benefiting all the people. Therefore, the lack of cultivation methods has always been a weakness for the Divine Martial Dynasty.

But now, things are different.

This time, they have gathered a large number of cultivation methods. Among them, there are thirty methods for the Divine Transformation Realm and nine for the Dao Palace Realm.

The remaining methods are at least of the Great Master level, with none below that.

This is quite normal.

After all, who among the cultivators who can traverse the Ancient Beast Mountain and enter the Nine Provinces is truly weak? The Great Master level is the bare minimum.

With such a batch of cultivation methods, Gu Yang believes that the cultivation world of the Nine Provinces will surely be revitalized.

More importantly, this is not all they have gained.

Once the restrictions on the items from the Gu Family Manor are fully lifted, the number of cultivation methods in the court's possession will greatly increase.

At that time, the Divine Martial Dynasty will no longer lack cultivation methods.

Additionally, apart from the cultivation methods, there are also a considerable number of divine weapons, precious materials, and elixirs.

These can directly boost the overall strength of the Divine Martial Dynasty in the short term.

After all, cultivation requires time. However, precious materials and elixirs can show immediate results, and divine weapons can enhance one's strength simply by wielding them.

However, the highest tier of the divine weapons is only at the Divine Transformation Realm level, and there are no ancient weapons for the Dao Palace Realm.

But even so, given the current scarcity of the Divine Martial Dynasty, these items are like a timely rain in the midst of a drought.

---

On the other side, the Dark Guards delivered a large number of storage rings and storage bags to the Gu Family Manor. Gu Qingfeng looked at the pile of items, which was at least several thousand in number.

"This kid really doesn't consider himself an outsider!"

Gu Qingfeng shook his head with a smile, then did not refuse. He directly used his divine sense to break the restrictions and had the Dark Guards take everything back to the court.

For him, even the restrictions left by sages were no obstacle, let alone the mere restrictions of the Divine Transformation Realm and Dao Palace Realm.

Afterward, Gu Qingfeng took out the jade bottle filled with blood and the gold-sealed broken finger.

Seeing these items again, his expression grew increasingly serious.

The terrifying aura they emitted was enough to show their extraordinary nature.

In the past, Gu Qingfeng's understanding was limited, and he found them unfathomable, but he could not determine their exact level.

Even now, with his cultivation rivaling that of a sage, he still could not be certain about the level of the original owners of these items.

Whether it was the drop of blood or the broken finger, the aura they emitted was far more terrifying than that of the Great Sage Phoenix.

In other words, the mysterious being who left these items was at least a powerhouse above the Great Sage level.

As for how much stronger they were compared to a Great Sage, Gu Qingfeng was still unsure.

After a long while, Gu Qingfeng carefully put these items away.

Since he couldn't study them now, he would wait until his cultivation improved further.

He believed that as long as his strength continued to grow, all the mysteries would eventually be revealed to him.

So, Gu Qingfeng was not in a hurry.

Then, he looked at the information panel, where new text had refreshed.

---

"Your descendant 'Gu Xiu' was attacked by cultivators 1369 times!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Xiu' was attacked by cultivators 3666 times!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Xiu' was severely injured but managed to escape!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Yang' received a large number of cultivation methods, spreading martial might across the land, greatly enhancing the foundation of his forces!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Yang' consumed precious materials, slightly improving his cultivation!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Yang' consumed mysterious elixirs, slightly improving his cultivation!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Yang' cultivated a mysterious technique, slightly improving his strength!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Xuan' joined the Grand Void Holy Land and became a true disciple!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Xuan' received guidance from a powerhouse of the Grand Void Holy Land, improving his cultivation!"

"Your descendant 'Gu Xiu' was critically injured, but after a breakthrough, received guidance from a Ninth Level Great Sage's remnant soul, advancing to the First Level of the Internal Organ Refinement Realm!"

"Reward Points 80!"

"Your descendant..."

...

"First Level of the Internal Organ Refinement Realm!"

Gu Qingfeng's brows furrowed tightly.

Gu Xiu’s breakthrough brought little joy to his heart.

The situation for his son seemed to be growing increasingly dire. This was evident from the frequency of attacks on Gu Xiu. In a short span of time, he had been attacked thousands of times, each leaving him severely injured, highlighting the severity of the challenges he faced.

Now, with the Cloud Thunder Cauldron in hand and his strength on par with a Saint, Gu Qingfeng had the confidence to venture into the Ancient Realm. While he might not dominate the Five Domains, he was certainly capable of suppressing any local threats. Under these circumstances, he had the intention to leave the Ancient Realm and search for Gu Xiu.

However, the problem was that the Ancient Realm was vast. Even a small corner of the Eastern Domain was several times larger than the Nine Provinces. Finding one person in such a vast area was no easy task.

With this in mind, Gu Qingfeng summoned Hongye.

“What are your orders, Lord?”

Hongye’s expression was respectful.

Gu Qingfeng waved his sleeve, and a divine blade suddenly flew out from the Grinding Hall, landing before Hongye. He then snapped his finger, and a drop of his blood fused with the blade. Instantly, the divine blade burst with a terrifying aura. Gu Qingfeng then used his divine consciousness to set a seal, suppressing the aura.

“This blade contains a drop of my blood and has three uses. Its power is comparable to that of a common ancient weapon, capable of slaying anyone below the Dao Palace Realm.”

“Take this blade and lead a group of secret guards to the Eastern Domain. Establish a base there and gather information about the Third Young Master.”

Gu Qingfeng commanded.

Hongye’s expression remained unchanged as he respectfully took the divine blade and bowed deeply.

“I will do my utmost to live up to your expectations, Lord.”

“Go!”

Gu Qingfeng waved his hand, and Hongye bowed again before turning to leave.

After Hongye departed, Gu Qingfeng gazed in the direction of the Ancient Beast Mountains.

The natural barrier was no longer as crucial. With many cultivators entering the Nine Provinces and the existence of communication jade tokens, the Nine Provinces had already been exposed. Gu Qingfeng believed that more cultivators from the Ancient Realm would continue to arrive, driven by curiosity about the Divine Martial Dynasty or the desire for the opportunities within the Nine Provinces.

From the moment the Great Sage Secret Realm appeared, it was inevitable that the Divine Martial Dynasty would truly connect with the Ancient Realm.

However, if the Divine Martial Dynasty were just an ordinary kingdom, its exposure to the various cultivators of the Ancient Realm would spell its doom. In a world where strength was the ultimate authority, rules could be trampled at will. Even the laws of a kingdom required sufficient power to enforce them.

The Divine Martial Dynasty had its own laws, but without the backing of sufficient strength, who would obey them?

Thus, if the Divine Martial Dynasty were an ordinary kingdom, it would be easy for other cultivators to overthrow it once they entered the Nine Provinces.

However, this was all hypothetical.

In reality, after the battle in Xing’an County, Gu Qingfeng had demonstrated his formidable strength, sending a clear message to the outside world. The Divine Martial Dynasty, while a kingdom, was not a pushover. Those who dared to enter the Nine Provinces and act recklessly would have to measure their own strength.

This was also why Gu Qingfeng had ruthlessly slaughtered other cultivators. It was not just to eliminate threats but also to show the cultivators of the Ancient Realm that the Divine Martial Dynasty had both formidable protectors and ruthless means.

Anyone who dared to cause chaos would face the same fate.

As a result, Gu Qingfeng believed that even if more cultivators entered the Nine Provinces, it would not lead to significant turmoil.

This was a necessary step for the Divine Martial Dynasty to integrate into the Ancient Realm.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end