Commencement
Zi Yan paid no further attention to the various gazes around her.
She stood in mid-air, her Purple-Gold Dress fluttering gently in the spiritual light, her purple-gold eyes fixed on the hundred-foot-tall ball of light before her, like a gambler focused on the moment the dice cup was revealed.
With a flick of her finger, she made a casual gesture, as light as a pebble being flicked into a lake.
The enormous sphere of light in front of it shot into the sky with a whoosh, leaving a dazzling purple-gold trail in the sky, like a shooting star flying in reverse.
Buzz!
The ball of light shot straight into the sky, growing smaller and smaller as it flew higher, until it disappeared from sight.
It seemed to pause for a moment, and in that moment the entire Heavenly River fell silent. Even the wind stopped, and even the mist condensed, like the silence before the opening of a grand play.
Immediately following, an endless radiance swept across the sky. The radiance was almost without end, surging outwards from the very center of the sky in all directions, like a colorful ribbon suddenly unfurled, covering the entire firmament.
The light covered the entire Heavenly River above the Milky Way, making the clouds within a radius of tens of thousands of feet appear as clear as glass.
The sheer scale and momentum of the event left countless powerful figures present speechless.
A burst of light swept across the sky, followed by Spirit Mist that spread out and enveloped the heavens.
The Spirit Mist was thick and moist, carrying a refreshing fragrance, like a spring rain soaked in Spiritual Energy falling on the entire sky.
The Spirit Mist churned and dispersed high in the sky, completely obscuring the source of the light, leaving only a vast white sea of mist hanging overhead. After about several dozen breaths, a clear, splashing sound seemed to rise from the sky.
The sound of water was initially very faint, like a dewdrop rolling off a leaf tip, but it soon grew louder and more frequent, like a symphony played by countless water droplets in the sky.
The Spirit Mist rippled, then gradually dissipated under the intense gaze of countless eyes. Like a curtain being lifted, the Spirit Mist slowly opened from the center to both sides, revealing a scene that made everyone hold their breath.
A collective gasp of astonishment rang out almost instantly as everyone saw the scene from above.
"That... that is?" One of the powerful figures was so shocked that he even stammered.
At this moment, everyone looked up with expressions of deep emotion.
Because at that moment, high above, a vast, crystal-clear river roared past.
The river stretched from one end of the sky to the other, its beginning and end invisible, its overwhelming expanse resembling a vast ocean transported to the heavens.
The river was tens of thousands of feet wide, and the water had an extremely pure and crystal-clear color, like a whole vein of melted crystal flowing across the sky.
The river meanders and twists, like a Giant Dragon coiled in the sky, its head raised high in the east and its tail hanging down in the west, occupying most of the entire sky.
From a distance, it even looked as if a boundless Heavenly River had gathered high in the sky at that moment!
Compared to this boundless Heavenly River, even the enormous lake formed by the ninety-nine Heavenly River Spirit of those who possessed the Golden Dragon Token seemed extremely small at this moment, like the difference between a hill and a pillar supporting the sky.
The lake, when suspended in mid-air, had once amazed people with its sheer size, but now, compared to this Heavenly River, it looked like a water vat placed next to a vast ocean, appearing shabby even as a mere backdrop.
Moreover, in the Milky Way high in the Heavenly River, there were crystal-like particles in the river water.
The crystals, about the size of a thumb, were crystal clear and rolled slowly in the river, like a group of fireflies swimming in amber.
Each crystal emanates an extremely refined Spiritual Energy fluctuation, the kind of refined Spiritual Energy that can only be cultivated by those who have reached the Earth Sovereign Realm.
An elderly man at the peak of the Tier 9 Supreme Perfection, standing at a distance, stared at the crystals, his pupils slightly contracting, and murmured, "Earth Sovereign level Spiritual Energy crystals... How many are there in this entire river? Perhaps tens of thousands?"
A young man nearby swallowed hard and whispered, "Grandpa, how much do you think that one would be worth if we pried it off and took it out with us?"
The old man rolled his eyes at him and said irritably, "You should think about whether you can even climb up there first."
In addition, Spirit Mist occasionally rises from the surface of the river, condensing into various shapes in the air.
Some transformed into dragons, their heads held high and claws thrashing, circling once above the river before dissipating.
Some transformed into phoenixes, their wings spread wide, their tails trailing behind them, like a burning cloud;
Some transformed into tigers, their four claws treading on the clouds, their eyes wide with fury, letting out a silent roar;
Some transformed into leopards, their bodies lithe and agile, gliding across the river and leaving behind a trail of shimmering light.
The shapes of dragons, phoenixes, tigers, and leopards appeared and disappeared one after another above the river, accompanied by various roars. The sounds carried an extremely ancient pressure, as if the souls of a group of divine beasts sealed for ten thousand years had been briefly awakened in this Heavenly River. It was incredibly wondrous.
"This... this is the legendary Perfect Baptism?" The powerful figures gradually came to their senses, but their faces were still full of shock.
The voice carried an almost dreamlike, dazed quality, like someone who had never seen the sea before standing on its shore for the first time.
The phenomenon that this person named Zi Yan has triggered is not a stream, river, or lake, but another Heavenly River phenomenon!
Compared to this Heavenly River, any other baptismal phenomenon is like a small fry compared to a mighty fry.
The stream of Qing Jianyi was like a ditch in the field in front of the Heavenly River, the river of Xu Ru was like a section of a cut-off stream, and the lakes of those with Golden Dragon Token were like a small pond placed next to the Heavenly River.
Those who had previously been quite pleased with their baptismal visions were now silent, each looking up at the Heavenly River stretching across the sky, their faces bearing only one expression: gazing upwards.
"She's really struck it rich this time," one of the people with the golden token exclaimed in amazement.
She was a woman dressed in a silver-white robe, with a dignified and aloof face. At this moment, she couldn't help but shake her head, her tone carrying a hint of emotion and self-mockery.
Everyone who heard this nodded in agreement.
The holders of the Golden Dragon Token all had complex expressions on their faces; some were unwilling, some were envious, and some were secretly clenching their fists and plotting something.
The young man in the dark green robe, who had just been looking gloomy, had now calmed down. He just stared at the Heavenly River, his lips moved slightly, and he said something.
Amidst the many envious gazes, Zi Yan raised her head.
Looking up at the vast Milky Heavenly River, she couldn't help but smile softly. Her purple-gold eyes reflected the shimmering light of the sky, and deep within her pupils, golden-red flames danced joyfully.
It seems she had the last laugh in this high-stakes gamble. She wasn't sure she could pull off the 100th fusion of the ninety-nine Heavenly River Spirit, but now it seems she made the right bet.
Since that's the case, then let her experience just how powerful this so-called Perfect Baptism really is.
Zi Yan spread her hands, and a dazzling purple-gold light burst forth behind her.
The light erupted from her body, like a volcano that had been suppressed for a long time finally finding an outlet.
A purple-gold light condensed, expanded, and transformed behind her. The purple-gold-red power of the True Dragon and the colorful power of the Heavenly Phoenix surged out simultaneously, intertwining behind her to form an enormous Dragon Phoenix.
The Dragon Phoenix body was thousands of feet long, with its dragon head held high, phoenix wings spread out, and Phoenix Feathers layered as the dragon coiled around its body. Its entire body was interwoven with purple and gold, like a divine beast that had walked out of ancient mythology.
Golden-red flames burned in the dragon's eyes, while purple-gold light flowed in the phoenix's pupils. Two completely different kinds of pressure emanated from it at the same time, blending together yet remaining distinct, as if yin and yang had achieved a perfect balance within its body.
When Zi Yan revealed her true form, the world erupted in uproar once again.
Astonished gazes continued to fall upon her; some gaped, some gasped, and some instinctively took a step back.
It's important to understand that both the Dragon Clan and the Phoenix Clan are among the most elite races. Dragon Clan rule over all beasts, while Phoenix Clan are reborn from the Nirvana; both stand at the pinnacle of the bloodline hierarchy in the Great Thousand World. But now, Zi Yan possesses a body that combines both—just how terrifying must that be?
A young cultivator standing on the river stared wide-eyed, muttering, "Dragon Phoenix... the bloodlines of True Dragon and Heavenly Phoenix combined in one body? How is that possible? Aren't these two bloodlines inherently incompatible?"
An elderly man standing nearby, a man of considerable experience, shook his head and whispered, "Under normal circumstances, they are indeed incompatible, but what if some extraordinary opportunity allows them to be reconciled? This girl's background is probably not simple."
As they watched in astonishment, a colossal Heavenly River, thousands of feet long, plunged down from the vast Milky Way high above, like a Giant Dragon, and enveloped Zi Yan.
The river cascades down from the sky like an upright waterfall, but its size is hundreds or thousands of times larger than that of an ordinary waterfall.
The river water crashed down from a great height, but instead of making a deafening roar, it carried a heavy stillness, as if the entire Heavenly River had been compressed into a single column of water, silently pouring into Zi Yan's body.
As Zi Yan's Dragon Phoenix body was washed by the river, it suddenly shone with a dazzling light. The purple-gold scales and Phoenix Feathers became even more crystalline and sharp under the influence of Spiritual Energy. Each scale was like a carefully polished gem, and each Phoenix Feathers was like a thin blade that had been repeatedly tempered.
The Perfect Baptism has officially begun.