"Why has he come here when we have no deep friendship?"
Hong Yun was puzzled.
Still, he stopped cultivating, flashed outside the cave, and arrived at its entrance.
"Friend Eastern Prince Gong, greetings!"
Hong Yun cupped his hands in salute.
After all, Eastern Prince Gong was the leader of the male immortals personally appointed by Hongjun. Although Hong Yun had never taken him seriously, he would not be discourteous on the surface.
"Hahaha, Friend Hong Yun, your Fire Cloud Cave is truly difficult to find! I searched throughout the Great Desolation before finally locating this place!"
When Eastern Prince Gong saw Hong Yun appear, his face broke into a broad smile.
"Why have you sought me out?"
Hong Yun asked directly.
Time was pressing, and Eastern Prince Gong was no close friend like Zhenyuanzi. Hong Yun did not want to waste words.
"Friend Hong Yun, I have received the Sage's decree to establish the Immortal Court. I have come specifically to invite you to join!"
Eastern Prince Gong spoke.
He invoked the Sage's name in hopes of making Hong Yun unable to refuse.
"Sorry, but I have no intention of joining the Immortal Court!"
Hong Yun rejected him without hesitation.
"What?"
Eastern Prince Gong froze.
He had already prepared his speech, intending to appoint Hong Yun as the Immortal Court's vanguard and send him to conquer the Great Desolation, exterminate demons and witches, and achieve great things.
But who could have expected Hong Yun to refuse outright?
"Friend Hong Yun, I am acting under the Sage's decree..."
Eastern Prince Gong brought up the Sage again.
"What nonsense! Eastern Prince Gong, don't think I don't know. Hongjun never ordered you to establish the Immortal Court!"
Hong Yun coldly interrupted him, cutting off the words he had yet to finish.
Hong Yun knew how Eastern Prince Gong's story ended.
After the Immortal Court was established, few immortal cultivators of great power obeyed its commands.
It suffered a crushing defeat in its battles against the Demon Clan's Heavenly Court and eventually self-detonated at Tanggu.
Even Queen Mother of the West could only retreat to Western Kunlun and never again show her face in public.
The so-called rule over all immortals was nothing but a joke.
The Immortal Court was merely a stepping stone for the Witch-Demon Tribulation.
It had even been annihilated before the tribulation reached its latter stages.
Now that Eastern Prince Gong wanted him to join the Immortal Court, was he not trying to drag him into the mess?
How could Hong Yun fall for that?
"Hong Yun, it is said that you are the greatest good person in the Great Desolation. Who would have thought you would be so insolent! I am the master of the Immortal Court. How dare you act so recklessly? Hurry up and admit your guilt!"
Exposed by Hong Yun, Eastern Prince Gong could not save face and shouted furiously.
He was the dignified master of the Immortal Court and leader of all immortals, yet he could not recruit even a few great powers in the Great Desolation.
Now that Hong Yun had talked back to him, he could no longer restrain himself.
"Admit my guilt? What are you supposed to be?"
Hong Yun could not be bothered with him. He turned and prepared to return to the cave.
"Seeking death!"
So thoroughly belittled, Eastern Prince Gong exploded with rage.
He raised the Dragon Head Staff and smashed it viciously toward Hong Yun.
This staff had been personally bestowed by Hongjun and possessed the ability to command all immortals.
Although its grade was not top-tier, it carried the Sage's reinforcement and could suppress immortal cultivators of great power.
In his view, Hong Yun was merely at the peak of the Great Firmament realm, on the same level as himself.
With the Dragon Head Staff, teaching Hong Yun a lesson would be effortless.
"Hm?"
Sensing the incoming staff, Hong Yun raised an eyebrow.
The staff's aura carried the Sage's majesty and suppressed immortal cultivators.
Had it been an ordinary great power, their combat strength would probably have been reduced by half by now.
But who was Hong Yun?
His physical body was stronger than that of the Twelve Ancestral Witches, his primordial spirit surpassed that of the Three Pure Ones, and his Devouring Divine Ability had already reached the realm of laws.
In the Great Desolation, unless a Sage personally came, what did he have to fear?
"Whoosh!"
Hong Yun summoned the Great Dao Treasure Gourd and sent it straight toward the staff.
The gourd was a supreme treasure with especially formidable defenses. It could even snap the Blood Mosquito Daoist's mouthparts.
"Bang!"
The staff slammed into the Great Dao Treasure Gourd, and the resulting boom shook the heavens.
The gourd remained completely unmoved, standing firm in place.
The Dragon Head Staff, on the other hand, gave off a faint cracking sound.
The Sage's reinforced might shattered under that single blow.
A majestic force traveled along the staff and struck Eastern Prince Gong.
"This is bad!"
Eastern Prince Gong's expression changed drastically, and his heart filled with terror.
He hurriedly circulated his magic power to stabilize himself, exhausting all his strength to dispel that terrifying force.
But at that moment, just as he raised his head, a giant palm had already descended.
"Get lost!"
Hong Yun shouted angrily.
As he summoned the gourd, he activated his physical body and strode forward until he stood before Eastern Prince Gong.
Then he swung his palm down.
"Smack!"
A crisp sound rang out.
Eastern Prince Gong transformed into a streak of light and was sent flying hundreds of millions of li.
Hundreds of millions of li away.
Eastern Prince Gong had a swollen, bruised face, and his mind was blank.
Hong Yun had shown him mercy.
After all, he was the leader of the male immortals personally appointed by Hongjun. If he was to be killed, it should not be by Hong Yun's hand.
Demon Emperor Dijun would take his life in the future.
With only ten percent of his strength, Hong Yun had sent him flying hundreds of millions of li.
Eastern Prince Gong was already terrified and no longer dared provoke Hong Yun.
"Hong Yun, you wretch! I will remember this grudge! Just wait for the Immortal Court's countless immortals to hunt you down!"
Hundreds of millions of li away, he left behind a threat before activating his treasure and fleeing in panic.
"Eastern Prince Gong, if I don't trip you up, I would be letting this opportunity go to waste!"
Hearing those words, Hong Yun felt displeased.
He had been cultivating peacefully, yet this man had disturbed him for no reason.
After a moment's thought, he did not immediately return to the cave.
Instead, he rode on auspicious clouds, transformed into a streak of light, and headed toward the Witch Clan's territory.
Several years later.
Hong Yun arrived at the Witch Clan's territory.
"Greetings, son of the Father God!"
"Greetings, Divine Son!"
"Lord Divine Son has arrived!"
When they saw Hong Yun appear, the Twelve Ancestral Witches were overjoyed and hurried forward to bow.
Hong Yun swept his gaze over the Twelve Ancestral Witches and nodded slightly.
By now, the Witch Clan's strength in the Great Desolation was growing day by day.
Although their numbers were inferior to the Demon Clan's, every one of them was powerful, with pure bloodlines.
They were far superior to the Demon Clan's rabble, which was cobbled together from countless mixed races.
"Lord Divine Son, have you come to visit the Witch Clan with some important matter for us?"
Ancestral Witch Dijiang stepped forward and asked respectfully.
The Twelve Ancestral Witches were all heroes who could hold up the sky and stand upon the earth, with fierce tempers. Ancestral Witch Zhurong was especially hot-blooded.
Even when facing Dao Ancestor Hongjun, they might not bow their heads or curry favor.
But Hong Yun was an exception.
In their hearts, he was the inheritor of Father God Pangu's bloodline.
Moreover, Hong Yun had once generously taught them the complete Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique.
That favor was immensely weighty.
Whatever Hong Yun requested, they would do their utmost to accomplish it.
"On this trip, I have brought you a heaven-shaking opportunity!"
Hong Yun spoke calmly.
"Oh? Please enlighten us, Divine Son!"
Upon hearing this, Ancestral Witch Dijiang's eyes shone brightly.
The other Ancestral Witches also turned toward Hong Yun in unison, their gazes burning.
The great opportunity mentioned by the Divine Son was certainly no ordinary treasure.
"Three immortal islands will soon appear in the East Sea. You can head there in advance and wait."
"Each immortal island contains countless treasures. Although spirit treasures are of little use to the Witch Clan, the other rare and wondrous treasures will be enough to raise your cultivation to a higher level!"
Hong Yun explained unhurriedly.
The three immortal islands of the East Sea were Yingzhou, Fangzhang, and Penglai.
Originally, this opportunity should have belonged to Eastern Prince Gong, who would use it as the foundation for the Immortal Court after establishing it.
With Penglai as its sacred ground, the Immortal Court would grow powerful enough to stand as an equal to the Demon Clan.
But now...
"Since Eastern Prince Gong wants to make trouble for me, don't blame me for taking your opportunity!"
Hong Yun sneered inwardly.
He did not know the exact time when the three immortal islands would emerge, so he had the Twelve Ancestral Witches go ahead and lie in ambush in the East Sea.
With the Twelve Ancestral Witches stationed there, they would certainly notice the instant the three immortal islands appeared.
When that time came, all the treasures on the islands would belong to him and the Witch Clan.
As for himself, if he personally stood guard, first, he would be alone and unable to cover the entire East Sea.
Second, time was pressing. He needed to focus on comprehending the laws of the Devouring Great Dao and the Nine Revolutions Primordial Technique.
Besides, his status within the Witch Clan was exalted, and he could be called the Divine Son.
If he wanted the treasures of the three immortal islands, how could the Witch Clan dare not offer them to him?
After telling the Twelve Ancestral Witches this information, he had nothing left to worry about.
"Thank you for the Divine Son's gift! We will head to the East Sea at once and await this enormous opportunity!"
Ancestral Witch Dijiang was ecstatic and repeatedly agreed.
They cultivated the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique, which consumed vast amounts of resources.
The second war between the Witches and Demons was approaching. If they could seize this opportunity, it would solve their immediate crisis.
"Lord Divine Son, these are the Communication Jade Tokens of the Twelve Ancestral Witches! When the three immortal islands appear, we will notify you immediately!"
Ancestral Witch Dijiang waved his hand, and twelve jade tokens appeared before Hong Yun.
With these jade tokens, they could contact Hong Yun at any time.
"Good! I will return to Fire Cloud Cave first and await your good news!"
Hong Yun accepted the jade tokens and departed atop auspicious clouds.
However, Eastern Prince Gong had not yet suffered any losses, the three immortal islands had not appeared, and the system's reward had not yet been triggered.
After returning to Fire Cloud Cave, he resumed cultivating.
Time flowed like water, and two thousand years passed in the blink of an eye.
On this day, Hong Yun stopped cultivating and slowly rose to his feet.
"It seems I have touched a bottleneck!"
He muttered under his breath.
Cultivating with the support of the Great Dao Cushion, he felt his progress blocked for the first time.
Now, whether it was the laws of the Devouring Great Dao or the Nine Revolutions Primordial Technique, advancing any further was dozens of times more difficult than before.
Progress that had once taken a hundred years might now require five hundred years to achieve.
For the time being, he decided to suspend his cultivation.
"Let's see how the results have been so far!"
A trace of anticipation flashed through Hong Yun's eyes.
Previously, eighteen flowers had bloomed from his physical body, while only nine had bloomed from his primordial spirit. The flowers of laws were even fewer, with only eight.
And now...
"Whoosh!"
He waved his hand and summoned the Devouring Divine Ability of Laws.
"Rumble!"
A gigantic black hole suddenly appeared before him, resembling the maw of a beast that devoured the starry sky.
The enormous hole gradually condensed.
The fragrance of laws spread out, and in moments, flowers bloomed one after another.
One, two, three...
As he urged it with all his strength, the flowers of laws flourished increasingly.
Ten, eleven, twelve!
In the end, the flowers of laws settled at twelve.
"Twelve flowers of laws. Compared with the previous eight, that's a tremendous improvement!"
Hong Yun murmured.
Increasing from eight flowers to twelve was more than a hundred times harder than increasing from one to eight in total.
The more flowers there were, the harder it became to make them bloom.
If he wanted to bloom thirteen or even more, the difficulty would increase exponentially.
However, although twelve flowers of laws were inferior to the eighteen flowers of his physical body, they had already reached his expectations.
As long as he surpassed ten flowers, he would have hope of forging a true Mythical Grand Unity.
"Let's try the flowers of the primordial spirit!"
"Whoosh!"
Hong Yun released his primordial spirit and condensed the flowers.
One, two, three...
Soon, the flowers of his primordial spirit surpassed ten.
Twelve, fifteen, eighteen!
In the end, the flowers of his primordial spirit also reached an astonishing eighteen.
"The Nine Revolutions Primordial Technique has reached the eighth revolution after these thousands of years. Blooming eighteen flowers of the primordial spirit is only natural!"
Hong Yun was filled with delight.
His physical body cultivated the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Technique and had only reached the sixth revolution, yet with the aid of Pangu's bloodline, it had bloomed eighteen flowers of the physical body.
Now that his primordial spirit had cultivated the Nine Revolutions Primordial Technique to the eighth revolution, blooming eighteen flowers of the primordial spirit was no surprise.
The three flowers of the physical body, primordial spirit, and laws had all reached his expectations.
Next, he would attack the first heaven of Foundation Establishment in the Mythical Grand Unity Method.
Once successful, he would rival an early-stage Quasi-Saint.
"Beep beep beep!"
Just as he was preparing to break through, the Communication Jade Token in his personal space suddenly rang.
Hong Yun lightly tapped it with his fingertip and took one out.
"Divine Son, the immortal island has appeared!"
The voice of Ancestral Witch Dijiang came through.
"The immortal island has finally emerged! Very well, I'll make a trip to the East Sea first!"
Hong Yun nodded.
Breaking through to the first level of Foundation Establishment was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
And he was unwilling to miss the opportunities on the immortal island in the East Sea.
"Whoosh!"
He left his cave dwelling and headed straight for the East Sea.
Guided by the jade token of the Twelve Ancestral Witches, he reached the place where the immortal island had appeared in only three years.
At the same time.
Western Kunlun.
"I sense a great opportunity emerging in the East Sea. Queen Mother, would you care to come with me?"
Eastern Prince Gong came to Queen Mother of the West's cave dwelling to ask.
Before you continue