After entering Mount Tai, Qi Fei had the same tasks as before.
Cultivation and drilling the troops.
Besides reorganizing Guan Yu's forces, he also had to start training the captured bandits of Mount Tai from scratch.
Both tasks were more troublesome than training the recruits had been, but they were still within Qi Fei's abilities.
Chen Xi, meanwhile, led Zilong, Jian Yong, and the others in beginning to govern Mount Tai.
Through relief work that paid people for labor, they gradually turned ordinary refugees and bandits into people with regular jobs.
Little by little, they began to develop.
At the same time, Qi Fei was developing in other worlds, too.
Heavenly Jewel Change World.
With the help of Zhou Shuiniu's friend Jiang Yu, Qi Fei headed to Vastness Palace to meet an elder who was a Consolidation Master.
However, when Jiang Yu's elder saw Qi Fei's Alexandrite Cat's Eye and Dual Physical Jewel, he didn't look pleased.
He sighed deeply, then refused Qi Fei's request to become his apprentice, his expression complicated.
Instead, he prepared to recommend Qi Fei to Ye Ruichen, one of the three God Masters of Vastness Palace.
"God Master" was the title given to the most accomplished Consolidation Masters.
The Consolidation Scrolls made by Consolidation Masters also came in different ranks.
The lower ranks could be set aside for now; their differences amounted to little more than the success rate of consolidation and a slight variation in the strength of the equipment.
It wasn't until the Master-Level that there was a true qualitative leap.
When a Master-Level Consolidation Master made a scroll, he could set an Inlay Slot in advance.
The Inlay Slot could be used to insert a Will Jewel or the Heavenly Core of a Heavenly Beast, similar to a Magic Core in the Coiling Dragon World.
It was just like a game.
When a Heavenly Core was inserted, the consolidation equipment could use its power, consuming less energy while unleashing greater might.
When a Will Jewel was inserted, not only could the equipment use the skill imprinted in the Will Jewel, but the skill also benefited from the equipment's enhancement.
Only at this stage did consolidation equipment truly meet the needs of Heavenly Jewel Masters.
The next rank was Grandmaster-Level.
Aside from improving the equipment's basic performance, the most important change at Grandmaster-Level was the addition of another Inlay Slot.
The importance of the number of inlay slots went without saying. Anyone who had played games basically knew that.
This was the limit for Elder Jiang.
But now, with his age catching up to him and his strength insufficient, he could no longer do it alone.
The final rank for Consolidation Masters was Legendary-Level, also known as God-Level.
God-Level Consolidation Masters were extremely rare. There were only a handful in the entire world.
God-Level consolidation equipment no longer needed Inlay Slots.
It could directly use the skills of any Will Jewel and enhance any skill.
Therefore, at this stage, they generally gave up the Inlay Slots and devoted that effort elsewhere.
That was the set.
Sets were made up of multiple Physical Jewels that resonated with each other, creating an effect greater than the sum of their parts.
The more Physical Jewels in a set, the stronger the average power of each piece.
Master-Level sets could have at most five or six Physical Jewels.
Grandmaster-Level sets could have at most eight.
God Master-Level sets could have at most eleven—a record set by the original protagonist, Zhou Weiqing.
When Zhou Weiqing had his complete God-Level set, the strength amplification provided by the equipment alone reached 10,240 times.
With that multiplier, even with only three beads of cultivation, Zhou Weiqing could use his strength to beat God King Tang to a pulp.
(With three beads of cultivation, Zhou Weiqing's strength had already surpassed a thousand jin.)
Who knew how someone had managed to let God King Tang act so smug in front of Zhou Weiqing, who had twelve beads of cultivation, at the very end?
As Qi Fei followed Elder Jiang, he grumbled inwardly.
"Xiao Fei, I've never seen talent like yours in my life. With my abilities, I'd only hold you back."
Elder Jiang turned around and said this.
"So, I'm going to send you to Master Ye. Only someone at his level can bring out your potential."
"I'll always remember your kindness, sir."
Qi Fei spoke earnestly.
"It's no kindness. I simply know my own limits."
Elder Jiang stroked his beard as he spoke.
"Besides, if I recommend you to Master Ye, I'll earn his favor, too."
Perhaps then he could ask Master Ye to make a God-Level Consolidation Scroll for a member of the Jiang family.
"Even so, I still have to thank you, sir."
Qi Fei bowed to Elder Jiang.
It wasn't as if he was the sort of person who crossed a river and then kicked away the bridge. And even if he were, wouldn't he have to cross the river first?
"Hahaha, I'm already very happy that you feel that way."
Elder Jiang laughed.
Then he brought Qi Fei to a grand building.
After reporting to the attendants, the two of them were led to a reception room.
After waiting for several minutes, a tall figure suddenly appeared in the room.
"Xiao Jiang, what brings you here?"
A deep voice rang out.
Qi Fei turned to look and saw a muscular old man.
The old man wore a purple robe. His short, gray-white hair stood straight up like steel needles, and his burly figure gave him a rugged air.
But his hands didn't match his tough appearance at all. They were as white as jade.
Clearly, there was something special about them.
"Greetings, Master Ye."
Elder Jiang led Qi Fei over to greet the newcomer.
"I've come to recommend a child to Master Ye. He has exceptional talent, and it would be a waste for me to teach him."
"Exceptional talent?"
Ye Ruichen gave Qi Fei a doubtful look.
Then his expression changed.
"Let me see."
Ye Ruichen grabbed Qi Fei and injected Heavenly Power into both of his wrists.
Qi Fei had originally planned to release it himself for him to see.
But this worked, too. It saved him the trouble.
"Remarkable, remarkable."
After a long while, Ye Ruichen finally let go, his face filled with shock.
"I thought that fellow Long Shiya had the greatest talent in the world. I never imagined I'd have the chance to witness the true pinnacle today."
Long Shiya was one of the original protagonist's teachers.
He was an Eleven-Bead Heavenly Emperor with six attributes, known as the Six Absolute Emperor, and one of the strongest people in the Heavenly Jewel Change World.
"Little fellow, what's your name?"
Ye Ruichen asked kindly.
"Qi Fei."
Qi Fei replied.
"An excellent name. Only a Ten-Bead Heavenly King can fly using Heavenly Power alone. It seems your parents have high hopes for you..."
Ye Ruichen launched straight into a round of awkward flattery.
Honestly, given Ye Ruichen's attitude, Qi Fei felt he could have called himself Dog Egg and the man would still have found a way to praise him.
"Xiao Fei, would you be willing to become my apprentice?"
Qi Fei had nearly dug a basement beneath the villa with his toes before Ye Ruichen finally got to the point.
"I'd be honored to stay by your side and learn from you, Master."
Qi Fei had come for this, so there was no way he'd cause trouble now.
"Good!"
Ye Ruichen clapped his hands and shouted excitedly.
"Take these two little toys and play with them. Consider them a welcoming gift. Later, I'll design a Legendary Set for you myself as a present for accepting you as my apprentice."
As he spoke, he took out two rings and handed them to Qi Fei.
"Thank you for the treasures, Master."
Qi Fei bowed to Ye Ruichen before accepting the two rings from him.
"One is a Space Ring. It can store some daily necessities."
As he spoke, Ye Ruichen demonstrated how to use the two rings.
"The other is a Disguise Ring. It can hide your cultivation and Life Bead. Even I can't see through its disguise."
Qi Fei was overjoyed to hear this.
Ye Ruichen was a God Master, with a cultivation level of at least ten beads.
If he couldn't see through it, that meant the vast majority of people would be fooled by the ring.
He could finally rejoin the Sharing among the Qi Feis.
Qi Fei almost felt like crying.
At last, he wouldn't have to stand by and watch like some cuckolded victim.
After giving him the welcoming gifts, Ye Ruichen turned to arrange a ceremony for accepting Qi Fei as his apprentice.
The formal ceremony would have to wait until he finished designing the blueprints, but they could hold an informal one right away.
Or rather, they had to hold it right away.
That old Xing Tianyi had dared to show off in front of him, boasting that he'd taken on a fine apprentice.
Now it was time to let him see a true genius.
And then there was that old woman Weiyang.
Now I've got a genius apprentice, too. You can go by yourself, you old woman.
"Hahahaha—"
At the thought of those two old friends, Ye Ruichen couldn't help throwing his head back and laughing.
This was fate.
A genius apprentice had come knocking right at his doorstep.
After laughing, Ye Ruichen suddenly remembered that, aside from his wonderful new apprentice, there was someone else here.
"Ahem, Xiao Jiang, thank you for this."
He coughed twice before speaking.
"I'll give you three chances. Once you've prepared the materials, I'll make three God-Level Consolidation Scrolls for you, and you may bring one person to watch."
As one of the greatest masters of the age, Ye Ruichen's offer was exceptionally generous.
He wasn't making it just because of Qi Fei. This was also Ye Ruichen's final favor to his former disciple.
May your family produce a God Master someday.
Ye Ruichen offered the silent blessing inwardly.
Elder Jiang was so moved that he nearly burst into tears. He repeatedly bowed and thanked Ye Ruichen.
In the end, Qi Fei had to calm him down, freeing Ye Ruichen to go find his old friends and brag about his newly accepted apprentice.
Coiling Dragon World.
Earlier, Qi Fei had put on an awkward act in front of the three maids, pretending to be a victim.
Afterward, Qi Fei observed them for a long time, but never saw any sign that they were reporting to other factions.
So he lowered his guard a little and focused on cultivating.
As for the threat Linley posed—
When the steward reported to him about girls of the right age at the magic academy, he casually mentioned the newly emerged peerless genius at Ernst Magic Academy.
Level 5 Mage Linley.
Qi Fei immediately relaxed.
Linley had only just become a Level 5 Mage. He hadn't even been to the Magical Beast Mountain Range yet, so he naturally hadn't met his first love by chance.
In other words, the thing Qi Fei was worried about was still a long way off.
"That's wonderful."
Qi Fei sighed inwardly after hearing this.
Then he cultivated with peace of mind.
One day, two months later.
Qi Fei suddenly felt the ordinary Magic Power undergo a qualitative change.
"I've finally become a Level 1 Mage."
Qi Fei couldn't help sighing.
Although he knew that his cultivation speed in the Coiling Dragon World was already considered fast.
But the threat drawing ever closer always made Qi Fei instinctively want to get stronger faster.
After all, he had only just gotten his cheat, and he had no intention of dying young.
Should he remind Linley not to pull out that sword?
The thought surfaced in Qi Fei's mind.
As long as Linley didn't pull out the sword, the magical beast siege wouldn't happen, and he'd have more time to grow stronger.
But how could he get Linley to believe him?
As Qi Fei pondered these things, an inexplicable power slowly began to emerge within him.
A peculiar sensation also began spreading from his wrist.
"My Life Bead is awakening?"
Qi Fei immediately understood.
The wrist was clearly where the Life Bead shared by Heavenly Jewel Change Qi Fei had manifested.
This had certainly taken long enough.
It had been a full three months since it was shared with him, and it had finally adapted to this world.
As Qi Fei marveled at this, he felt something break free of its restraints. Several beads appeared around his left and right hands.
"BOOM—"
Before Qi Fei could examine them, a majestic force descended before him.
A burly man dressed in black appeared in front of him.
He wore armor and carried a weapon, as if he were about to wreak destruction at any moment.
Destruction.
The Supreme God of Destruction had descended!!!
The instant Qi Fei saw the man, the thought came to him naturally.
Beyond that, faced with such a majestic force, Qi Fei couldn't even think.
He could only stand there in a daze, unable to move at all.
Then the Supreme God of Destruction moved.
He released his weapon and gently touched Qi Fei between the brows.
Then the Supreme God of Destruction vanished without a trace, and that immense power disappeared too.
At last, Qi Fei regained the ability to think normally.
"Haah... haah..."
Qi Fei sprawled on the ground, gasping for breath.
Facing an embodiment of the laws in a mortal body that hadn't even reached the Saint Realm was simply too difficult.
It was beyond what any ordinary person could endure.
Only after quite some time had passed did Qi Fei finally recover enough to examine the information that had appeared in his mind.
"?"
The instant he saw the information, Qi Fei's expression changed.
It said that the Supreme God had descended just now to reward him for developing his own Innate Ability: the Life Bead.
The reward was an enhancement to Qi Fei's Innate Ability.
Originally, each Physical Jewel could only take the form of a single piece of equipment.
(The two Physical Jewels of the Mutated Dual Physical Beads were actually one and the same.)
But now, Qi Fei's Physical Jewel could take several different forms.
What's more, this ability could grow along with his cultivation. For every additional jewel in his cultivation, each Physical Jewel would gain another form.
The Physical Jewel's abilities were powerful, but the Will Jewel was even more impressive.
Qi Fei's Will Jewel could now not only imprint ordinary skills as before, but also copy the Innate Abilities of Divine Beasts.
Qi Fei immediately thought of the Innate Ability the Four Divine Beasts used together in the original story.
If he could copy all four abilities, wouldn't he be able to match an Overlord once he became a Chief God?
Qi Fei was overjoyed at the thought.
He immediately tried to get up and study his Life Bead.
But as he struggled to his feet, he noticed someone standing before him.
It was an old man dressed in plain black robes.
His long black hair hung loose, and his beard fell to his chest.
"Hello, young man. My name is Beirut."
He spoke.
Before you continue