"Suppress!"
Di Jun uttered a single word and raised his eyes slightly. Ripples spread across the void before him, and the Chaos Bell flew from Taiyi's hand to land before Di Jun.
In an instant, Earth, Wind, Water, Fire erupted, and boundless chaos emerged. Yin and yang split into two poles; the Taiji Eight Trigrams and the universe, Qiankun, appeared. Countless phenomena manifested, as if evolving into all creation. The surrounding world seemed to collapse in an instant, replaced by a gray expanse covered in imprints of Dao patterns.
This was the Chaos Grand Array guarding the Three Immortal Islands!
"No need. You think a mere formation can stop Me? How laughable!"
Seeing that Taiyi and the others wanted to help, Di Jun waved them off and calmly stepped forward.
With every step, a Golden Path appeared beneath his feet, and Earth, Wind, Water, Fire fell into stillness. Behind him, countless trillions of beings seemed to sing his praises, while the sound of immortal music echoed from Jade Palaces and Towers. Boundless clouds of mist filled the sky, and radiant rays of divine light fell all around.
Wherever Di Jun passed, the void split and the grand array receded. The Dynasty Crown seemed to reach its ultimate sublimation and spread outward, and all the Heavenly Court's powerful figures and high-ranking officials immediately followed.
Before long, Di Jun and the others had easily crossed the Chaos Grand Array and entered the self-contained space where the Three Immortal Islands lay.
Before everyone's eyes stood three immortal islands, steeped in ancient charm and majestic, magnificent, and imposing.
Even the smallest of the three islands was more than countless trillions upon trillions of times larger than the Milky Way Galaxy where Di Jun had lived in his previous life. Each island had reached the Middle Thousand level, and the peak of it at that. They even bore faint traces of rules transforming into the Dao, as if they were on the verge of ascending to the Great Thousand level!
They were called immortal islands, but they were more like three majestic worlds.
They were none other than the legendary Penglai, Yingzhou, and Fangzhang—the Three Immortal Islands!
"There are no particularly powerful restrictions or formations inside the Three Immortal Islands. All the defenses are in the Chaos Grand Array guarding them. Bai Ze, you ten go search Fangzhang Island for resources. Taiyi—"
His eyes seemed to turn golden, layer upon layer of runes forming in their depths. Di Jun's gaze swept over the islands as if taking them all in, revealing every hidden wonder around them.
Once he had confirmed there was nothing amiss, Di Jun withdrew his gaze. He had been about to send Taiyi and Nuwa to search Yingzhou Island while he went to Penglai Island, but Nuwa interrupted before he could finish.
"I will accompany Your Majesty."
Nuwa spoke in a cool, even tone.
"Right, right. I can search Yingzhou Island by myself. I don't like working with others, anyway."
Taiyi said with a cheerful grin.
"Very well."
Di Jun nodded slightly. It was a trivial matter to him; either way would do.
"Then let us begin!"
Di Jun spoke with force and conviction.
They had to hurry. His understanding of the Method of Mythological Imperial Dynasty was growing ever deeper. He was only missing a medium before he could fully comprehend it. Once they were done here, the Heavenly Court would be on the right track, and he could devote himself entirely to seclusion and completely derive the Method of Mythological Imperial Dynasty!
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
Purple Mansion, Donghua Palace.
After dismissing all the high-ranking officials of the Purple Mansion, East King Duke sat cross-legged, his face ashen. In an instant, his expression returned to calm.
Turning toward a patch of void, East King Duke said coldly, "Is this the sincerity of the people behind you?"
"Emperor, those few lords already gave you information about the Three Immortal Islands. You simply failed to seize the opportunity."
An aged voice came from the void, and a hazy figure appeared before East King Duke.
"Heh. Since I didn't obtain the Three Immortal Islands, what use is that so-called sincerity to Me? If you want Me to work for you, then show Me a little more sincerity. Otherwise, why would I, the Head of Male Immortals personally appointed by the Dao Ancestor, ever need to join you?"
East King Duke sneered.
"I will report this to the lords. But remember, Emperor, we are not limited to choosing you. The Heavenly Court is also a good choice."
The hazy figure spoke calmly.
"Then go to those two feathered beasts. I am the true orthodoxy of the Primordial Wilderness! Do you really think I can't see through your intentions?"
"Enough. I have no desire to waste words. The Heavenly Court already has three Quasi-Saints. If you want Me to unify the Primordial Wilderness, then find a way to help Me attain the Quasi-Saint Dao Fruit and further strengthen the Purple Mansion's foundations. Otherwise, there's nothing more to discuss."
East King Duke said indifferently.
"..."
The hazy figure fell silent.
Were you cultivating for yourself or for us? And now you wanted us to help you break through to Quasi-Saint?
Damn!
You've got some nerve, you bastard.
"I will report it."
After a moment of silence, the figure replied.
With that, the figure said no more and turned to leave. Just as the phantom was about to vanish completely, its hazy features gradually grew clear.
It was Zhen Yuanzi!
"I don't care about the schemes of you powerful figures. I only want to attain the Dao! Whoever helps Me attain the Dao, I belong to!"
Watching Zhen Yuanzi's departing figure, East King Duke's eyes blazed with ambition. He spoke as if talking to himself.
Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, several years passed.
Outside the Three Immortal Islands, Di Jun and the other high-ranking officials of the Heavenly Court gathered once more.
"Your Majesty, these are the resources we obtained."
Bai Ze handed over a spatial seal. Di Jun swept it with his immortal sense and perceived the vast quantities of heavenly treasures stored inside.
"Your Majesty, apart from the three islands themselves, we have gathered all the resources."
Taiyi handed over another spatial seal.
"Excellent. This trip has yielded a great deal. Even at the Heavenly Court's current rate of growth, these resources will be enough for a Kalpa. This show of force in the Eastern Sea should also attract more beings to join the Heavenly Court. Taiyi, I leave this matter to you. Once we return, I will need to continue my seclusion."
A faint smile appeared on Di Jun's face as he spoke with satisfaction.
Resources enough to last a whole Kalpa!
The Three Immortal Islands truly lived up to their reputation as Chaos Fragments!
It was worth mentioning that Di Jun hadn't found any of the so-called God-Slaying Spear or World-Destroying Black Lotus that appeared in so many Primordial Wilderness novels.
But the Creation Green Lotus did exist. It wasn't a twelve-petal lotus, but it had nine petals. With proper cultivation, it might yet recover to the twelve-petal level.
Besides that, there were countless heavenly treasures, including things like Innate Spiritual Roots. It was no exaggeration to say that the Heavenly Court had struck it rich overnight; the haul was more than enough.
"Your Majesty, won't you refine these three islands and merge them into the Heavenly Realm? If you did, the Heavenly Realm might even have a chance to reach the Great Thousand level."
Taiyi asked, puzzled.
"I won't refine them for now. There may be something wrong with these Three Immortal Islands. I need to make preparations first. There's no harm in waiting until I'm completely certain."
Thinking of how strangely the Three Immortal Islands had become known throughout the Primordial Wilderness, and how East King Duke had managed to pinpoint their location so precisely, Di Jun shook his head, his mind full of questions.
"Yes."
Taiyi nodded and asked no more.
"All right. Let us return."
Di Jun spoke slowly.
Return!
It was time for the curtain to rise!!!
Before you continue