Chapter 312: The Sky Always Shines

Chapter 312: The Sky Always Shines

"I didn't expect this either."

Even the secret realm host, gazing at the irregular lines emitting a milky white glow on the limestone square before him, was somewhat shocked. He had been in this secret realm for a long time.

He had always thought that these irregular lines were merely part of the sixth stage's challenges, guiding people through it.

He never imagined that this place was actually a large teleportation array.

Who would set up a large teleportation array at the entrance of a palace's mountain gate?!

However, upon reflection, it made sense. This was the largest space in the entire palace. If they needed to teleport a large number of people, such as ten thousand Sword Cultivator Puppets, this place seemed to be the best choice. Aside from here, there was no other location that could accommodate the simultaneous teleportation of so many individuals.

"Hmm."

Chen Qiu was in a relatively good mood. He hummed lightly with a smile, "Preparing to go home, Xiao Shuai, you can also start planning to establish your own clan."

"Thank you, Senior!"

The secret realm host also nodded with a hint of excitement. After more than seven years, he could finally create a clan for his own Artifact Spirit Clan. Like them, these awakened Artifact Spirits could finally be free from their confinement in the secret realm and explore the outside world, marveling at its wonders!

"Senior, I have a question, but I'm not sure if I should ask. What cultivation stage are you at now?"

In the past, he could see through the senior's cultivation, but now, he couldn't see through the senior's cultivation at all. The senior's cultivation speed over the past seven years had been a bit too terrifying, and it was hard to imagine what would happen if he were given seventy years. Would he become a Human Immortal upon exiting seclusion?

"There's nothing I can't tell you. I'm at the seventh stage of Tribulation Transcender."

"The seventh stage of Tribulation Transcender?!?!"

The secret realm host's voice trembled as he spoke, his eyes filled with disbelief and shock.

"What's wrong?"

Chen Qiu glanced casually at Xiao Shuai, wondering why he was reacting so strongly. Although his cultivation had indeed increased rapidly, with so many resources supporting him, wasn't it normal to progress faster?

"How is this possible?!"

The secret realm host's voice quivered as he said, "Senior, when you first entered the secret realm, you were at the fourth stage of Body Fusion. From the fourth stage of Body Fusion, you cultivated to the peak of Body Fusion, then broke through to the initial stage of Great Vehicle, and from there, you advanced to the peak of Great Vehicle. After that, you skipped the Great Vehicle stage and went straight to the initial stage of Tribulation Transcender. Now, you've cultivated to the seventh stage of Tribulation Transcender."

"In between, there are twenty minor realms. Senior, did you break through twenty minor realms in seven years?"

"And these are the minor realms of Great Vehicle and Tribulation Transcender. Normally, advancing in these cultivation stages takes several decades each. Senior..."

The fat dragon, who was initially ready to chime in, also paused and subconsciously looked at Chen Qiu, "Yeah, Qiu, your cultivation speed this time is a bit too fast, isn't it?"

". . ."

Chen Qiu remained silent, not speaking. At that moment, he suddenly realized something—it seemed like a bug had occurred!

The cultivation stages above Essence Refining Stage are: Body Fusion Stage.

The cultivation stage above Body Fusion Stage is: Great Vehicle Stage.

The cultivation stage above Great Vehicle Stage is: Tribulation Transcender Stage.

But he seemed to have skipped the Great Vehicle Stage entirely.

After reaching the peak of Body Fusion, he didn't experience the Great Vehicle Stage at all. He went straight to the Tribulation Transcender Stage. Over the years, he hadn't felt that there was anything wrong with this. He had almost forgotten about the Great Vehicle Stage, assuming everyone was like him. But now, with the secret realm host's reminder, he suddenly realized the issue.

A bug had occurred in his cultivation! How did he skip the Great Vehicle Stage?

However, he could clearly sense that his combat power hadn't been affected by skipping the Great Vehicle Stage. The good news was that his cultivation speed had been significantly accelerated in the dark, and he was almost at the peak of Tribulation Transcender. His cultivation speed had been maximized.

The bad news was that he had skipped a major realm, which meant he missed nine ordinary entry draws and nine supreme entry draws.

There were pros and cons.

In his opinion, the benefits might outweigh the drawbacks. Compared to eighteen draw chances, he might prefer to skip a major realm, which would rapidly increase his cultivation speed and allow him to break through to Human Immortal and reach the Immortal Realm sooner.

After a moment of contemplation, he didn't hide the truth from the others. He hesitated and said, "Now that you mention it, I just realized it too. I never entered the Great Vehicle Stage. After reaching the peak of Body Fusion, I went straight to the initial stage of Tribulation Transcender. There was no Great Vehicle Stage for me."

"Has this ever happened in history?"

"Can you skip a stage like this?"

The secret realm host stood in silence for a moment before muttering, "Skipping the Great Vehicle Stage... Although the Great Vehicle Stage doesn't have any special cultivation techniques and doesn't involve a qualitative transformation like the Golden Core or Nascent Soul stages, even if you skip it, it won't affect your future cultivation."

"Many people say that the combat power of the Great Vehicle Stage is almost indistinguishable from the Body Fusion Stage. But because of this stage, it takes hundreds, or even thousands of years more to break through to the Tribulation Transcender Stage."

"The most important thing is—"

"In almost every major cultivation stage, there are special cultivation techniques, such as 'Body Fusion Kill Moves.' Even if there aren't any, there's still the necessity of that cultivation stage, like the need for a Golden Core or Nascent Soul. Even if you don't have these, in the Tribulation Transcender Stage, although there aren't special cultivation techniques, you'll still undergo Heavenly Thunder Tempering, where a vast amount of tribulation clouds will temper your body, significantly enhancing your physical qualities before you break through to Human Immortal."

"Only the Great Vehicle Stage is useless. It doesn't have any of the three functions mentioned above, and the only purpose of this stage is to make your spirit energy slightly more vast. Aside from that, it serves no purpose."

"Moreover, cultivating from the Body Fusion Stage to the Great Vehicle Stage requires a significant amount of cultivation resources. And despite consuming so many resources, your combat power barely increases, causing many cultivators to get stuck at this stage for their entire lives."

"So, skipping this realm doesn't really mean anything."

"Moreover..."

The Realm Host scanned the surroundings and hesitated, "There are some rumors I can't disclose outside, but here, under the veil of the Heavenly Dao, it shouldn't be a problem. I heard that the Heavenly Dao has its own consciousness, just like us Artifact Spirits. It didn't exist initially, but later, it awakened its own consciousness."

"The Heavenly Dao doesn't want us to cultivate too quickly."

"Hence, it added the Great Vehicle Stage as a cultivation realm. Otherwise, this realm doesn't significantly enhance combat power; it merely makes the Spirit Qi more abundant, and it has no real significance. It also consumes a vast amount of cultivation resources."

"It is said that the only purpose of this realm's existence is to restrict our cultivation speed."

"Huh?"

Fei Long looked at the Realm Host with suspicion, "You've been in the Secret Realm all these years and haven't even set foot on the continent. Where did you hear this from?"

"Of course, it was my Artifact Spirit Senior who told me all these secrets."

". "

Chen Qiu nodded thoughtfully. This explanation made sense. Perhaps because he came from the Celestial Prison, which was not under the control of the Heavenly Dao, he directly skipped the Great Vehicle Stage, a realm used by the Heavenly Dao as a restriction, and entered the Tribulation Transcender Stage.

That was good.

With this explanation, he didn't feel any regret about the eighteen lottery chances. Otherwise, he would probably have to cultivate in the Great Vehicle Stage for several years, wasting a lot of Spirit Stones. Time was the most valuable resource, especially at this three-million-year mark.

The next moment—

Chen Qiu took a deep breath, and with a thought, countless Spirit Qi surged into the irregular lines on the Limestone Square, causing the formation array that was already emitting a milky white glow to shine even brighter!

Immediately, the air began to buzz, as if it were being scorched by raging flames, twisting violently. He felt a sudden intense pressure in his chest, and then countless blinding rays of light erupted from the teleportation array, enveloping them within.

Along with the intense light, they disappeared from their original location.

After several hundred breaths—

"This is the Heaven-reaching Continent."

In the dead of night, Chen Qiu stood atop a mountain, feeling the solid ground beneath his feet and gazing at the countless stars that he hadn't seen in a long time and the fresh air surrounding him. He couldn't hold back his tears of joy and spread his arms wide, taking a deep breath.

At this moment, he really wanted to shout.

"I, Hu Hansan, have finally returned!"

At this very moment, he felt like he had been released from prison. Seven years, who could have imagined that Chen Qiu would be trapped in a palace for a full seven years? Did anyone know how he had endured those seven years?

All he did was cultivate, and cultivate some more.

The days were truly bitter.

The days weren't actually that bitter; it was just normal cultivation, and he had more cultivation resources than others. Seven years of seclusion was a normal thing, but he didn't like the feeling of being unable to control his freedom.

Now, it was all good.

With the teleportation array and the Mocking Heaven Sect Sovereign Token, he could freely enter and exit the Cao Tian Palace at any time. However, leaving the Cao Tian Palace didn't require Spirit Stones, as Spirit Qi could be directly absorbed from the Void. But traveling from the continent to the Cao Tian Palace required paying Spirit Stones to activate the teleportation array inscribed on the Sovereign Token.

The cost varied from 5 million to 500 million Spirit Stones, depending on the size of the teleportation array and the number of people traveling.

But he had his own small world, so he wasn't worried about these expenses.

This teleportation array couldn't be used to travel to any continent at will. It was more of a transportation tool. Once the blinding light from the teleportation array enveloped them, it would carry them at high speed through the Void and safely arrive at the desired continent.

Although it was called teleportation, the path still involved moving through the Void and entering continents protected by the Heavenly Dao's shackles, but it was much faster than the corridor.

Since this was the path they were taking, it was clear that they needed to enter the password for a specific continent.

They only knew the password for the Heaven-reaching Continent, the Heavenly Dao's shackles for this continent. The pitch-black void they first encountered in the Secret Realm was the Heavenly Dao's shackles for the Heaven-reaching Continent.

They didn't know the passwords for any other continents.

Just then—

". "

Chen Qiu abruptly looked up at the sky with a frown. Perhaps his cultivation was too high, as he could clearly sense that this continent was rejecting him. The Tribulation Seventh Layer was indeed not suitable for him.

Despite his goodwill towards this world, it was rejecting him.

This was truly frustrating.

Forget it.

He didn't bother to say more and immediately led Fei Long and the others to the Central Continent of the Heaven-reaching Continent, just like how they had defeated a puppet in the Vast Continent.

This time, they didn't rely on any tricks like the 'Heavenly King' title but entered the continent legitimately.

This meant that—

He had reached the 'Fourth Rank Continent', and was only eight steps away from the 'Twelfth Rank Immortal Plane'.

However, as soon as they landed on the Jiang Taiping Continent, before they could do anything—

"Boom!!!"

A loud thunderous sound came from the horizon, followed by countless tribulation clouds rapidly gathering in the sky. Countless heavenly forces started to converge towards Chen Qiu's head, and numerous lightning bolts flickered within the tribulation clouds, releasing intense tribulation power.

". "

Chen Qiu looked up at the commotion above him without any expression, and after a moment, he let out a soft sigh.

He knew it.

Every time, his Thunder Tribulation never came at every minor realm, but instead accumulated to a certain extent and then arrived all at once. Especially this time in the Cao Tian Palace, the tribulation couldn't strike him, and now, it had all accumulated together.

He had just returned home.

Couldn't he be allowed to rest for a while? At least let him eat some roast goose, or let him send Bai Pingling back to the Bai Family first. After so many years of friendship, let him reconnect with them. Otherwise, everyone would think he's dead.

There were still so many things to do, couldn't this tribulation wait a bit longer? But after waiting for hundreds of breaths...

Chen Qiu realized something was amiss. The tribulation was still slowly gathering, and at this point, the power of the tribulation that had gathered was already very weak, giving people the feeling that it was like a newborn baby being dragged directly onto the battlefield.

It was clear that this tribulation had reached the limit of this continent, but this continent was obviously not satisfied with this limit and was preparing to push it to the extreme.

In other words, the power of the tribulation couldn't be summoned from multiple continents like the power of heaven and earth, otherwise, this continent would definitely summon tribulation power from other continents to strike him. Damn it.

No wonder the Heaven-reaching Continent was in a hurry to get him to leave.

It seemed like they felt that their continent's tribulation power wasn't enough to kill him, so they wanted him to go to the Fourth Rank Continent to get smashed?

Damn it.

Chen Qiu didn't think much further and turned to Bai Pingling beside him, "In a while, I'll send you back to the Bai Family. You explain to the Bai Family Patriarch about the situation with your two companions. I really didn't do anything, it's the first time I've been this kind-hearted."

"As a result, your two companions, one actively sought death, and the other actively looked for it."

"Having cultivated to such a realm, how come they don't seem like normal people?"

"I'm too lazy to say more."

After hesitating for a moment, Bai Pingling spoke cautiously, "Senior, Junior wishes to follow in your footsteps and serve you with utmost loyalty."

"Sure."

If it were the old Chen Qiu, he would have refused, but the current Chen Qiu was about to face the biggest crisis he might encounter. At this moment, the more people around him, the better. He waved his hand, "Even if you stay in the Mock Heaven Sect, you still need to go back and inform your family head, let the Bai Family know what has happened these years."

"Of course, you need to be discreet about what to say and what not to say. You must be prudent in this matter."

"A single careless word from you could bring disaster to the Bai Family."

After saying this, Chen Qiu didn't say anything more. He simply waved his hand and sent Bai Pingling to the Third Rank Continent.

Before leaving, Bai Pingling's face was serious and respectful as he bowed and saluted. He was well aware that if the secret of the Cao Tian Palace were to be revealed, there would definitely be powerful cultivators seeking them out. For the Bai Family, it would truly be a disaster.

"Next, it's going to be a year of breakthroughs."

Chen Qiu placed his hand behind his back, completely ignoring the tribulation power that was still slowly gathering above his head. Instead, he gazed into the distance, feeling the coolness in the air brought by the impending torrential rain, and smiled without saying a word.

As long as he emerged...

His strength would see a tremendous boost. For example, he would have multiple chances to draw from the Rainbow Entry, and he had those many Sword Cultivator Puppets at the Peak Celestial Immortal realm. Not to mention the gains he had obtained from the Secret Realm.

After this tribulation was over, he still had an important matter to attend to.

Using the title of 'Heavenly King', he planned to go to the Fifth Rank Immortal Realm to find a power called the 'House of Wei'. He had already activated three Sword Cultivator Puppets at the Peak Celestial Immortal realm, and with these three puppets by his side, he believed that the House of Wei wouldn't be able to stand against him.

His 1.7 billion Spirit Stones were still temporarily stored in the House of Wei.

He only hoped that the House of Wei would be frugal and not squander his 1.7 billion Spirit Stones.

His combat power would also rapidly surge to unprecedented heights during these events.

"Senior."

The Secret Realm Host by his side, at this moment, had a blank expression, his eyes filled with greed as he carefully observed every corner of this world. The excitement and agitation in his eyes couldn't be faked; for him, it was like he had just been born and was seeing the world for the first time.

"After you transcend the tribulation, I will establish a clan."

"Establishing a clan is said to have tribulations, I'm afraid your tribulation might affect me."

"Mhm."

Chen Qiu was actually quite curious about this, as he still had a strand of Race Fortune. He had obtained it a long time ago but had never used it, and he didn't have the idea of creating a race of his own. This was also the first time he had seen someone establishing a clan.

So he was quite curious about the process.

When Little Shuai establishes his clan later, he'll have to observe carefully.

After waiting for a while, the tribulation still didn't descend, so he stopped waiting and contacted the Deceptive Buddha.

"Sorry, something came up. Is that strand of Soul Fortune still needed?"

A certain First Rank Continent.

The Deceptive Buddha, who was currently in a temple, eating roast goose with a scholar by a bonfire, suddenly paused and looked at the message he received through the sound transmission talisman. After his body stiffened for a moment, he couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

"Your senior brother is really tough."

"He's out, he sent me a message."

"He's out?" The scholar's eyebrows furrowed slightly, "Where did he come out from? It seems like you know something we don't."

The reason why the Mock Heaven Sect was so certain that Brother Qiu hadn't died was threefold. First, they had absolute trust in him; even if he died, Brother Qiu could crawl out of the underworld. Second, if Brother Qiu were dead, there would be a huge commotion; there would be a grand funeral, and it wouldn't be so quiet. Third, if Brother Qiu were dead, the two people he trapped in the Vast Continent would have appeared, but as far as they knew, those two had never shown up.

It was precisely because of this that they were certain Brother Qiu wasn't dead, but they didn't know where he was.

As the Deceptive Buddha spoke these words, it gave them an odd feeling.

"Hmm," the Deceptive Buddha said, his body stiffening slightly as he realized his slip of the tongue. With a helpless sigh, he explained, "I was almost dead, and the only thing I needed was Chen Qiu's Soul Fortune. But he suddenly disappeared, and I was more anxious than you can imagine."

"I sought out an old friend, a powerful Divination Cultivator."

"I asked him to help with a divination to locate Chen Qiu."

"Initially, the divination results were completely chaotic and incorrect. Chen Qiu had concealed his Heavenly Secrets, making it impossible to divine his whereabouts. Eventually, the Divination Cultivator paid a significant price and managed to divine that Chen Qiu was trapped in a desperate situation from which escape seemed nearly impossible."

"I don't know where this desperate situation is."

"I have no idea how he escaped."

"The chances of escape are unknown."

"The reason I didn't tell you about this is that it wouldn't have made much sense. Even my Divination Cultivator friend couldn't determine the location, so it's even less likely that you would know. It would only make you anxious, and after more than seven years, I assumed Chen Qiu would never get out."

"I never expected him to actually escape."

"And the first thing he did after escaping was to ask me if I still needed that strand of Soul Fortune. This means that during those seven years, Chen Qiu was constantly thinking about that strand of Soul Fortune that I didn't deliver in time. He even felt quite guilty about it and remembered it all this time, which is why he contacted me as soon as he got out."

The Deceptive Buddha exhaled deeply, his expression filled with complex emotions. "Chen Qiu truly values his promises, and I can't help but feel touched."

The Scholar remained silent, but after a moment, he couldn't help but smile.

His younger brother, who was also a scholar, joined in the laughter.

Regardless of the process, a positive outcome was all that mattered. As for the strand of Soul Fortune that the Deceptive Buddha mentioned, it was given to him, and the story of how he obtained it was a long one—it was a matter of life and death.

There was no other choice.

Without that strand of Soul Fortune, the Deceptive Buddha would have died, and the collaboration between the Demon Clan and the Mock Heaven Sect would have abruptly ended. The remaining disciples of the Mock Heaven Sect wouldn't even know which continent they were on, and they wouldn't be able to gather. Moreover, they wouldn't be able to complete the tasks assigned by Chen Qiu.

Therefore, that strand of Soul Fortune had to be given to the Deceptive Buddha.

However, obtaining it came at a significant cost. But compared to the current outcome, all the sacrifices were worth it.

Just as Chen Qiu had once said.

The night sky won't remain dark forever; the sun will always rise.

And now, the sun had risen.

He finally saw the light of dawn.

After a brief conversation with the Deceptive Buddha, Chen Qiu's anxious heart calmed down slightly. The Deceptive Buddha hadn't died, even though he had withheld a strand of Soul Fortune, reducing the collaboration period from 300 years to 200 years. But none of that mattered anymore.

200 years or 300 years—it made little difference.

What surprised him was that the strand of Soul Fortune had been provided by the Scholar. He wondered where the Scholar had obtained the Soul Fortune, as he recalled that it wasn't easy to come by.

He decided to ask about it later.

Thanks to the Scholar's timely provision of the Soul Fortune, the disciples of the Mock Heaven Sect had been traveling across the continent for the past seven years. Not only did this greatly increase their cultivation speed, but their overall strength also improved rapidly, and the results of their travels were evident.

Some even had their unique opportunities.

For example, Qu Gui, who had followed Chen Qiu since Daxia Kingdom, eventually became the Outer Gate Senior Elder of the Mock Heaven Sect. It was said that he had a great opportunity, and his cultivation and combat power increased significantly. Now, he was quite proud and had gained quite a reputation among the disciples.

Chen Qiu wasn't sure what opportunity Qu Gui had encountered.

However, he had already instructed the Deceptive Buddha to gather all the disciples of the Mock Heaven Sect on the Jiang Taiping Continent.

It was time to temporarily halt the mission.

Since he had returned, it was only right to hold a celebration and catch up with everyone. He wanted to see the changes in his friends, including the Scholar and Aotian.

Bonfire parties had become a tradition in the Mock Heaven Sect.

Whenever something good happened, there would be a bonfire party.

"Oh, right," Chen Qiu suddenly remembered something and patted his head. He then opened the small world and released Bear Gao and the Brown Bear Clan who were inside.

The next moment—

"Master!" Bear Gao, with tears and snot running down his face, knelt on the ground, his eyes filled with excitement as he looked at Chen Qiu. "I never thought I'd live to see the day when I could meet you again, Master. These seven years without your company must have been lonely for you."

"A little," Chen Qiu sighed. "Next time, it's better if you stay by my side."

Indeed, these seven years without anyone to serve him tea or water made him feel like something was missing.

"Alright, stop crying. How have your Brown Bear Clan members been these years?"

"They're all doing well," Bear Gao said, wiping away his tears. Then, with a serious expression, he continued, "The clan has welcomed many new members, and we're quite prosperous now. Oh, and that manager who specializes in breaking seals..."

"He's been in the Hundred Cities all this time, never leaving."

"I was worried that he might have a mental breakdown from not talking to anyone for too long, so I went to talk to him every day. Now, his mental state is very stable, and there's no sign of any breakdown."

Chen Qiu suddenly realized that he had almost forgotten about this matter. After Bear Gao's reminder, he thought about how his old subordinate might have endured some hardships over these seven years. But then again, seven years was a long time, and the seals in the Hundred Cities weren't that difficult to break.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end