Chapter 13

Before coming here, he had made it clear that his target was Randeng alone. These great powers were all intelligent people—why would they risk their lives for an ally they had only just met?

Thus, the moment Li Peng charged over, they all retreated.

In the blink of an eye, Li Peng had closed in before Randeng.

Randeng hurriedly brought forth the High-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure Spirit Coffin Lamp to protect himself.

Li Peng merely sneered as the Chaos Yin-Yang Pagoda descended with overwhelming might.

"Boom—crack! Boom!"

The barrier released by the Spirit Coffin Lamp could not hold for even a breath beneath the pagoda before shattering inch by inch and exploding apart.

The Chaos Yin-Yang Pagoda slammed heavily into Randeng.

Another tremendous boom shook the void. Randeng's body exploded, and his soul was utterly destroyed.

Only the Spirit Coffin Lamp remained, floating alone within chaos.

At the same time, the system notification sounded:

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for killing Randeng and completing Choice Three. Reward obtained: Top-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure Yin-Yang Pearl."

After confirming Randeng's death, Li Peng finally relaxed.

But at that moment, an angry roar rang out:

"Li Peng! I, King Father of the East, will never rest until one of us is dead!"

Li Peng dismissed him with disdain. Turning around, he saw King Father of the East charging at him madly with bloodshot eyes and a sword in hand.

He frowned, not expecting King Father of the East to be so foolish as to charge forward despite knowing he was no match.

After a brief thought, he understood the reason—

King Father of the East was the Head of Male Immortals personally appointed by Dao Ancestor Hongjun. Killing him now would surely offend Hongjun.

This desperate battle was merely a performance meant to win the hearts of his subordinates.

Seeing through this little scheme, Li Peng found it laughable.

A mocking look crossed Li Peng's face as he sneered inwardly, Since you dared use me, you must pay the price!

The next moment, the Chaos Yin-Yang Pagoda above his head shot straight toward King Father of the East.

With a tremendous boom, King Father of the East was blasted tens of thousands of miles away.

Li Peng turned back, his gaze indifferent. "If you were not the Head of Male Immortals personally appointed by Dao Ancestor, I would have taken your life today!"

King Father of the East wanted to speak, but suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

Li Peng merely gave a contemptuous smile before turning and flying toward Fuxi, Nuwa, Changxi, and Xihe.

As he watched Li Peng's departing figure, King Father of the East's eyes were filled with resentment and hatred. Yet in the end, he had nothing to say. His strength was inferior—what could he do?

The newly recruited subordinates beside him already showed traces of contempt in their eyes, and they even began regretting their decision to join the Loose Immortal Alliance. With such an incompetent leader, what future could the alliance have?

Meanwhile,

After meeting up with Fuxi, Nuwa, Changxi, and Xihe, Li Peng led them back to the prehistoric world.

A thousand years passed in the blink of an eye,

And the group finally returned to the prehistoric world.

The moment they entered, Li Peng said, "Everyone, no feast lasts forever. Let us part here for now."

Fuxi, Nuwa, and Xihe all nodded. Only Changxi was reluctant to part. "Big Brother Li, won't you come to Taiyin Star for a visit?"

Li Peng shook his head. "There is no need. Dao Ancestor Hongjun's first sermon has ended, and the cultivation of the prehistoric world's cultivators will surely experience a surge. You must also raise your cultivation as soon as possible and build up your foundations. Otherwise, when you attend the next sermon, your gains may be limited."

At the mention of the next sermon, Li Peng thought of how Hongjun would teach the method of Slaying Three Corpses. He wanted to advise them not to rush into slaying their corpses, but he could not find a suitable reason. He could hardly tell them outright that he suspected the Dao Ancestor of plotting something, could he?

After hearing Li Peng's words, Fuxi, Nuwa, Xihe, and Changxi all nodded. They understood that an age of great contention was about to arrive. If they could not seize the momentum and rise, they would be left far behind and would find it difficult to achieve Dao again!

After bidding farewell to the four of them, Li Peng flew directly toward the East Sea.

Time passed, and five hundred years went by in a flash.

Following the map in his mind, Li Peng finally arrived at the location of Penglai Island.

Yet this stretch of sea appeared no different from any other part of the East Sea, with not a trace of an array in sight. If the system map had not clearly marked it, even searching for another aeon might not have revealed its location.

Li Peng looked around as magic power surged around him. In an instant, countless feathered arrows formed from magic power shot in every direction.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Explosions rang out in succession, and waves tens of thousands of feet high surged into the sky. Only the sea ahead and to the right remained unusually calm, with faint ripples appearing in the air.

Li Peng looked toward that area of sea and thought, Penglai Island must be here.

He came before the array and rapidly formed hand seals. In only a moment, he had cast tens of thousands of incantation seals.

As the final seal fell, a passage immediately appeared in the void ahead. Without hesitation, Li Peng stepped inside.

After a dizzying whirl, he found himself standing atop a mountain peak brimming with Spiritual Energy.

Ancient trees towered all around him, while immortal herbs and spiritual medicines grew everywhere. Countless Spiritual Roots hung heavy with fruit, too numerous to count. Any one of them falling into the outside world would be enough to spark a struggle among the various powers of the prehistoric world.

But Li Peng did not stop to look. He flew straight toward the center of the island. In his eyes, the entire immortal island already belonged to him, and these Spiritual Roots were naturally his as well. Why rush to collect them? He could simply return once their fruits ripened.

Before flying far, Li Peng saw a towering giant tree standing at the heart of the island. He immediately increased his speed and arrived beneath it in an instant.

In that instant, boundless happiness enveloped him.

"**Damn! This... this is actually the Yellow Middle Plum, the foremost of the Top Ten Innate Spirit Roots!

The records of later generations were indeed correct. Three Immortal Island truly contains great treasures! Hahaha!" Li Peng shouted in delight.

The Yellow Middle Plum was the foremost of the prehistoric world's Top Ten Innate Spirit Roots. It blossomed once every hundred thousand years, bore fruit once every hundred thousand years, and required another hundred thousand years to mature. It only produced nine fruits each time. Its flowers resembled lotuses, and its fruits resembled pearl buds. Both flowers and fruits bore the words "Yellow Middle."

Although the Yellow Middle Plum required three hundred thousand years to mature, no one knew how many aeons had passed since the prehistoric world was created. Apart from the first several dozen aeons, which had been its growth period, it had continued bearing fruit ever since.

Now, the fruits on the Yellow Middle Plum tree were as numerous as stars. Li Peng roughly estimated that there were at least ten thousand of them.

"If I use these fruits to forcibly raise my subordinates, wouldn't I be able to lead more than ten thousand Grand Unity Golden Immortals to contend for supremacy in the prehistoric world?" Li Peng muttered to himself.

He immediately imagined himself leading more than ten thousand Grand Unity Golden Immortals across the prehistoric world, slaughtering enemies in every direction.

But before long, Li Peng came to his senses and shook his head. "Sigh, this kind of thing can only be imagined!

The Yellow Middle Plum is indeed miraculous. Smelling its flowers grants ten thousand years of cultivation, while eating one fruit allows one to become a Grand Unity Golden Immortal at once. But that is only if the consumer's body can withstand it and does not explode.

More importantly, forcibly raising one's realm exhausts one's potential and causes cultivation to stagnate for life!

Such forcibly raised Grand Unity Golden Immortals possess extremely low combat strength, perhaps even inferior to gifted Grand Unity Golden Immortals.

Moreover, the Witch and Demon Clans are the protagonists of this coming calamity. If my Phoenix Clan becomes too powerful, Hongjun will likely personally destroy the Phoenix Clan before the Witch and Demon Clans even act.

All beneath Saints are ants. No matter how numerous the ants, they cannot harm a Saint!"

Thinking of this, Li Peng sighed again, lamenting that his strength was too weak and that he had no choice but to consider every possibility before acting.

This further strengthened his desire to become stronger.

Li Peng continuously adjusted his breathing.

No one knew how long passed before he finally calmed his emotions and chose to look on the bright side.

Although the Yellow Middle Plum had many side effects, it was still highly useful for helping those stuck at the Peak Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm break through to the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm.

And it was perfectly suited to Li Peng—his comprehension of laws had already reached the middle stage of the Quasi-Saint realm, while his cultivation was only at the peak of the Grand Unity Golden Immortal realm. What he lacked was precisely the accumulation of magic power.

During the three thousand years he spent listening to the Dao at the Purple Firmament Palace, Li Peng had tempered his foundation to an incomparably solid state.

The reason Li Peng had yet to break through to the Quasi-Saint realm was because he first wanted to understand Dao Ancestor Hongjun's method of achieving Dao through Slaying Three Corpses.

He intended to compare them and see which method of achieving Dao was simpler and more powerful.

He even suspected whether the method of Slaying Three Corpses could coexist with the path of laws.

Li Peng cast aside the distracting thoughts in his mind and reached out to store more than ten thousand Yellow Middle Plums inside the Chaos Yin-Yang Pagoda.

Then he looked around and saw rare flowers and exotic plants everywhere, with a hundred flowers competing in splendor amid magnificent scenery.

Suddenly, a stone stele caught his attention.

Li Peng walked closer to inspect it, only to find that the stele appeared utterly ordinary and possessed no remarkable features.

But on Penglai Immortal Island, being ordinary was itself unusual.

He placed a hand on the stone stele and poured magic power into it. The stele immediately shone brilliantly, and a piece of information entered his mind.

"This is actually the array core of Penglai Island. By refining the stone stele, I can gain complete control over the entire immortal island." Li Peng muttered in shock.

A fiery gleam flashed through his eyes. Complete control was entirely different from merely being able to enter and leave.

Li Peng immediately poured in all his magic power and began refining the restrictions within the stone stele.

A thousand years passed in the blink of an eye, and he finally refined all the restrictions.

At this moment, he felt as if he had become the Heavenly Dao of Penglai Island. Everything on the island lay within his perception, and not even the slightest movement of wind or grass could escape his divine sense.

Li Peng swept his divine sense across the entirety of Penglai Island.

"Hmm? This is the Innate Middle-Grade Spirit Root Purple Gold Grape!"

"This is the Innate High-grade Spirit Root Purple Jade Fruit!"

"This is the Innate Middle-Grade Spirit Root Kirin Melon!"

"This is the Innate Low-Grade Spirit Root Golden Apple Tree!"

"And..."

Penglai Island truly was a treasured land. Li Peng discovered three High-Grade Innate Spirit Roots, five Mid-Grade Innate Spirit Roots, and more than ten Low-Grade Innate Spirit Roots here.

Suddenly, twelve pearls shimmering with treasure light appeared within his divine sense.

"Huh? These twelve pearls are all Innate Middle-Grade Spirit Treasures. Could they be the twelve Sea-Calming Pearls?"

Li Peng was puzzled. Were there not twenty-four Sea-Calming Divine Beads in Dao Ancestor Hongjun's possession? Why had another twelve appeared here? He had no time to think further and decided to take them first.

He rose into the air and arrived before the twelve Sea-Calming Divine Beads in the blink of an eye. Just as he reached out to take them, the system notification suddenly sounded.

"Ding! The host's current situation has been detected. Please make a choice!"

"Choice One: Obtain the twenty-four Sea-Calming Divine Beads in Hongjun's possession and open the Thirty-Six Heavens. Reward: one million years of magic power; Yin-Yang Law comprehension increased by twenty percent."

"Choice Two: Obtain the twenty-four Sea-Calming Divine Beads in Hongjun's possession, then gather the Five Elements Pearl and Four Symbols Pearl. Reward: Chaos Supreme Treasure Chaos Bead."

"Choice Three: Obtain the twenty-four Sea-Calming Divine Beads in Hongjun's possession, gather the Five Elements Pearl and Four Symbols Pearl, and fuse them yourself into the Chaos Supreme Treasure Chaos Bead. Reward: One Aeon Magic Power; Yin-Yang Great Dao comprehension increased by thirty percent."

"Please make your choice as soon as possible."

Li Peng examined the three choices and found that they resembled three stages of a mission. First obtaining the twenty-four Sea-Calming Divine Beads to open the Thirty-Six Heavens would not hinder his later collection of the Five Elements Pearl and Four Symbols Pearl. Although personally fusing the Chaos Bead in Choice Three would be difficult, completing Choice Two would allow him to obtain a complete Chaos Bead for reference, making the fusion process much easier. The tasks connected perfectly.

"System, can I choose multiple options?" Li Peng asked nervously. He wanted every one of these rewards.

"Yes," the system replied.

"Then I choose them all!" Li Peng said excitedly.

"Ding! The host has confirmed Choices One, Two, and Three. All have been selected. Confirm?"

"Confirm."

"Ding! Choices completed. Please complete the missions as soon as possible."

Li Peng breathed a sigh of relief and thought, Since I have a chance to obtain the Chaos Bead, could I open a world within it and achieve Dao through strength? Excitement flashed in his eyes, but soon dimmed—he had not cultivated the Law of Strength, so how could he open a world?

A thought suddenly flashed through Li Peng's mind. He muttered to himself, "Why must opening a world necessarily rely on the Law of Strength?

In books I read before, there were worlds of ice filled with ice spirits;

There were also worlds of fire, inhabited entirely by fire-attributed beings.

So why can't I use the Yin-Yang Law to open a heaven and earth?

Then, by using yin and yang to evolve the five elements, the world I create will possess the complete Yin-Yang Five Elements. Its grade surely will not be low!"

The more Li Peng thought about it, the more enlightened he felt, and the clearer his future path became.

"Hahaha! I've finally found my own Dao!" he laughed loudly.

After his excitement subsided, Li Peng continued his treasure hunt.

Although he dearly wanted to enter seclusion and raise his cultivation immediately, the treasures on Penglai Immortal Island had yet to be completely gathered,

Not to mention that the treasures of Yingzhou and Abbot Islands were still waiting for him.

Leaving treasures unclaimed was not Li Peng's style.

One year later, Li Peng finally collected every spirit treasure on Penglai Island.

This time, he obtained several Innate Low-Grade Spirit Treasures and three Innate Middle-Grade Spirit Treasures,

Though no higher-grade treasures appeared, Li Peng was already thoroughly satisfied.

After leaving Penglai, Li Peng flew toward Yingzhou Island.

After casting a series of hand seals, he opened a Space Channel and stepped into the island.