Three-Day Deadline

Within the mirror.

A pillar of energy that pierced the heavens erupted from Gu Changqing's body, running through heaven and earth.

High above the nine skies, the rolling clouds collapsed. Vast ripples surged outward in all directions, like a tide drowning the firmament.

At that moment, heaven and earth changed color. In the mountains and forests, every beast fell silent!

Outside the mirror, everyone stood with their mouths agape, unable to speak for a long while.

Was this even fucking human!!!

"He... entered the Dao just like that???"

At that moment, every supreme powerhouse in this world could no longer control their expressions. These peerless existences who had swept across the eight wastelands and six directions were all utterly dumbfounded!

Qi Refining!

In truth, this realm was not worth mentioning in these people's eyes.

What astonished them was the chasm separating mortals from cultivators!

For a mortal, what a terrifying natural barrier that was!!

"And judging by the commotion he caused, it seems the Heavenly Emperor directly reached the twelfth level of the Qi Refining Realm!"

At that moment, everyone fell silent.

They did not know how to put it into words!

Terrifying beyond measure!!

Ye Chen himself was even more utterly dazed.

Though he was unwilling to admit it.

He had no choice but to say that he was jealous.

The cultivation talent he had always been proud of, the talent he believed could crush all living beings, was so thoroughly trampled by the youth in the mirror that it was not even shit anymore.

Just as everyone wondered how this Heavenly Emperor had managed it.

They saw that within Gu Changqing's body—

A single bone and sinew.

Erupted with blazing divine radiance. The radiance spilled in all directions, noble beyond words, spreading like a great sun, incomparably magnificent.

Within that dazzling brilliance floated endless tiny characters.

Like great Dao divine inscriptions, obscure beyond comprehension; yet they also seemed like the ancient remains left behind in the river of time by unimaginably terrifying ancient Gods and Devils—ancient and mysterious!

At that moment, the eyes of everyone outside the mirror froze!

Immortal Root!!!

The cultivators were both shocked and enlightened.

They were shocked because, aside from Gu Youwei, the Heavenly Emperor also possessed an Immortal Root!

They were enlightened because they now understood why the Young Heavenly Emperor's cultivation talent was so terrifying.

An Immortal Root was a supreme treasure, and its greatest function was to aid one's cultivation.

There had been a saying since the ancient era: any cultivator who possessed an Immortal Root was destined to become a supreme being of their generation!

To put it plainly, as long as you had an Immortal Root, you could become a supreme-level powerhouse even while lying down!

"How could he have an Immortal Root? That's impossible!!"

Gu Youwei looked as though she had been struck by lightning, her expression filled with utter shock!

The others found it equally hard to accept.

Everyone knew that Gu Youwei had turned against the Heavenly Emperor because he had nearly taken her Immortal Root!

But if the Heavenly Emperor already had one, why would he try to take hers?

Gu Youwei was completely distraught, her thoughts tangled into a mess.

Before this, even after seeing how well Gu Changqing treated her, she had never been moved.

That was because her heart harbored a towering hatred for this Heavenly Emperor—a hatred for that deception.

She hated that her dearest brother had been willing to turn against her for the sake of an Immortal Root.

But now, since he already had an Immortal Root, why would he take hers?

Gu Youwei no longer looked aloof and otherworldly. Clutching her head, she was in immense pain.

"Could it be that there had always been some misunderstanding about what happened back then? How could the brother who treats me so well now have become so cold and heartless?!"

She muttered to herself, her heart a tangled skein.

Seeing Gu Youwei in this state, Ye Chen was slightly taken aback. After pondering for a moment, he said, "I understand."

"Emperor Jiang once said that a year later, the Heavenly Emperor's Divine Meridians ruptured and his Dao Palace was destroyed. Perhaps his Immortal Root was dug out as well."

"Precisely because he had experienced the power of an Immortal Root, perhaps that was why he later set his sights on Miss Youwei's Immortal Root."

"That's right! Emperor Ye's words make a great deal of sense."

The crowd immediately echoed, "The Heavenly Emperor's Dao Palace was shattered and his Divine Meridians severed. Perhaps that robbed him of the chance to break into the Immortal Realm, and the Immortal Root was his hope. Perhaps that was precisely why he laid hands on Miss Youwei."

"After all, by then, he had already committed many cruel and lawless deeds. He was capable of turning his hand against even his closest kin!"

A self-mocking smile touched Jiang Minghuang's face as he said lightly, "Yes, he was indeed capable of it—and quite practiced at it, too."

"Would you really do that?"

Gu Youwei gazed at the youth in the image, her eyes filled with desolation.

After Gu Changqing stepped onto the path of cultivation and his Immortal Root revived, he displayed an extraordinarily powerful talent for cultivation.

Deep within these mountains, he cultivated day after day.

Other than preparing food for little Youwei each day, it seemed that cultivation was all that remained in his life.

Fortunately, little Youwei had the little leopard she had grown up with for company. She was also sensible enough not to disturb her brother.

Perhaps because he cultivated day and night without rest, his cultivation advanced at a breathtaking pace, soaring a thousand miles in a single day.

When he reached the peak of the Qi Refining Realm, Gu Changqing lost any method to continue cultivating.

Without a cultivation technique, he began to explore on his own. Yet under such circumstances, he actually figured out how to condense Divine Meridians and forge a Dao Palace.

This scene left the old monsters outside the mirror thoroughly shocked.

Every one of them could only utter one word: "Monster!"

With Stellar Transposition, the sun and moon turned.

Such days continued for nearly a full year.

By this point, Gu Changqing's cultivation had reached the Palace Forging Realm, only one step away from the so-called Mighty Expert Realm.

Qi Refining, Spirit Condensation, Palace Forging!

These were the three foundational steps on the path of cultivation.

After completing these three steps, lacking any further method, Gu Changqing finally encountered a bottleneck.

Yet he did not give up. While probing the threshold of the Mighty Expert Realm, he continued tempering his Dao Palace and Divine Meridians.

During this time, he had also tried teaching little Youwei to cultivate.

But the girl was far too mischievous. A realm he could reach in a single day took her nearly a year of dawdling, yet she still could not even enter through the gate.

"The Heavenly Emperor's cultivation speed is truly terrifying."

"It is only a pity that such a peerless genius had his Dao Palace and Divine Meridians destroyed."

Outside, countless cultivators sighed with emotion, even feeling some regret.

At that moment, someone asked, "By the way, Emperor Jiang, how long until you meet the Heavenly Emperor again?"

"Three days." Jiang Minghuang replied expressionlessly.

Three days?

That soon?

Everyone froze in shock.

The Heavenly Emperor was still in the mountains, and from the looks of it, he had no intention of coming down.

After neutralizing Cao Yuwei's attack this time, Mei Gongzi did not rush to counterattack. She merely stood where she was.

Cao Yuwei's brows drew together slightly. Was this little girl's perception truly so sharp? After he had formed armor from flames, he still had other methods at his disposal. If Mei Gongzi had followed up with an attack, he was confident he could use those methods to restrain her. But she had not advanced, forcing the ability he had been holding in reserve to break off.

His war blade slashed out once more, its surging blade intent several degrees stronger than before. Cao Yuwei moved with the blade, man and blade becoming one as he charged straight at Mei Gongzi.

The Heavenly Secret Plume in Mei Gongzi's hand once again formed the Heavenly Mysterious Circle, and with an instantaneous shift, she changed positions. While dissolving her opponent's attack, she also broke his lock-on. The next instant, she was already on the other side. A golden-red gleam flashed over Cao Yuwei's body and vanished. Had she not dodged quickly enough, another kind of ability would undoubtedly have descended upon her.

A battle of attrition! She seemed intent on competing with Cao Yuwei in endurance.