As if he had thought of something, Grey Cat suddenly said, "Now that you're Rank 8, I hope you'll temper your Golden Body as much as possible. Only by building a solid foundation can you cultivate faster in the future and make your path along the Great Dao smoother!"
Zhang Tao understood what Grey Cat meant. To be honest, the Zhang Tao of the past would never have attempted the Nine-Forged Golden Body. He didn't have time to waste on it. But now, Zhang Tao understood the importance of building a solid foundation.
He also knew that humanity didn't depend on him alone. As a pawn in the hands of many forces, humanity would surely continue to exist. Besides, the Heaven Suppressing King was holding down the fort outside.
Now that he was back, he planned to spend some time forging his Golden Body. As for the Catacombs, he had no intention of going there for now. It wasn't time for him to compete for resources yet.
After enjoying a meal Brother Xian had cooked for him, Zhang Tao went back to cultivate. Grey Cat had given him so much Indestructible Substance, and he needed to put it to good use.
He absorbed Indestructible Substance as he tempered his Golden Body. The reason everyone found it so difficult to temper their Golden Bodies was, first, the limitations imposed by their mental strength and, second, the time it took to accumulate Indestructible Substance.
With the advantages Grey Cat had given him, Zhang Tao cultivated at an astonishing pace, making rapid progress!
At that moment, the Heaven Suppressing King, in Zhenxing City, raised an eyebrow. He had seen Zhang Tao cultivating. It had only been a few days since he last checked, yet Zhang Tao was already Rank 8. Even in ancient times, such speed was rare.
He glanced at his own descendant and sighed. Li Zhen was still working hard to temper his skull.
Even after reaching Rank 8, it was impossible to quickly finish tempering one's Golden Body without Indestructible Substance.
After a moment's thought, golden light appeared on the Heaven Suppressing King's fingertips, gradually gathering into a golden orb. He estimated it should be enough for Li Zhen to complete the Nine-Forged Golden Body. There was no helping it—if he didn't give his descendant a boost, the gap between him and Zhang Tao would only keep growing.
Carrying the orb, the Heaven Suppressing King went to Li Zhen's room. Li Zhen was still cultivating with all his might, completely unaware that the Old Ancestor had arrived—and was about to give him a boost.
Only when the Heaven Suppressing King spoke did Li Zhen awaken from his cultivation. Seeing him, Li Zhen hurriedly said, "Greetings, Old Ancestor!"
The Heaven Suppressing King nodded, thought for a moment, then said, "This is the Indestructible Substance I obtained recently. I'll give it to you. Using it will greatly shorten the time needed to temper your skull and Golden Body!"
As he spoke, a golden orb appeared and floated in front of Li Zhen.
Seeing so much Indestructible Substance, Li Zhen was stunned. He stared blankly and said, "Old Ancestor, this..."
"Take it. You're the next absolute peak of the Li Family!" the Heaven Suppressing King said with a smile. It was true. The others weren't very impressive. That mere thousand meters, and not one of them had managed to cross it. He was at a loss.
Only then did Li Zhen come to his senses. He hurriedly used his Space Ring to store the golden orb, then said, "Thank you, Old Ancestor!"
The Heaven Suppressing King nodded and left without another word, leaving Li Zhen to his own devices.
Li Zhen was overjoyed. With all that Indestructible Substance, he could definitely catch up to Zhang Tao. No, first he needed to reach Rank 8.
With that thought, Li Zhen began absorbing the Indestructible Substance to temper his skull. His speed immediately increased.
Meanwhile, the Heaven Suppressing King arrived in the space where the God Forger was staying. The God Forger was reading a book, and when he saw the Heaven Suppressing King enter, he immediately snorted, clearly displeased to see him.
Seeing the God Forger's attitude, the Heaven Suppressing King immediately perked up. Everyone knew that he had two great hobbies: fighting people to a draw, and bullying the God Forger.
Now this old bastard dared to give him the cold shoulder? Heh. Wouldn't it be a waste not to beat him up for that?
And so, screams soon rang out in the small space.
"Old bastard, you son of a—don't push me!" the God Forger cursed. The Heaven Suppressing King was whipping him with chains! Did the God Forger have no dignity? What did he think he was, a monkey?
The Heaven Suppressing King only smiled. "Push you? What are you going to do if I do?"
As he spoke, he flicked the chains again, striking the God Forger. The God Forger flew into a rage, but he couldn't beat the Heaven Suppressing King. In the end, he had no choice but to beg for mercy. Damn it, that old bastard fought dirty!
"Hmph. Can you speak properly now?" The Heaven Suppressing King curled his lip. In his eyes, the God Forger was an old bastard who needed a good beating.
"What the hell did you come here for?" The God Forger was exasperated. Had that old bastard run into trouble outside and come here to take it out on him?
The Heaven Suppressing King gave a couple of snorts and said, "The cat's come out. You should know that, right?"
The God Forger didn't respond. Of course he knew. But what did the cat coming out have to do with him?
"By rights, the great era hasn't arrived yet, but the cat came out early and is following that kid Zhang Tao around. I feel like this will be the last time. Your clone is out there, so you should know that kid too. What do you think?" The Heaven Suppressing King didn't mind the God Forger's attitude and continued asking.
The God Forger said nothing. The Heaven Suppressing King raised an eyebrow again. Defiant, huh? I like that!
Seeing the Heaven Suppressing King about to move the chains again, the God Forger hurriedly replied, "What do you think? Do you really believe us old guys can do anything? Become Emperors? Heh. Can't you become an Emperor, old bastard? Or are you afraid? Or do you also think there's a huge problem?"
The Heaven Suppressing King nodded. To tell the truth, he couldn't become an Emperor because someone was blocking him. But more than that, he believed becoming an Emperor was a huge trap—an extremely dangerous one. That was why he didn't dare. He wanted to find an answer, but after all these years—eight thousand years—he still hadn't found it.
As for the Emperors being dead? Heh. He didn't believe it for a second. They were probably all in the Origin Dao, plotting something. If even the Emperors couldn't do it, he didn't think he could manage it now.
"Zhang Tao rose to prominence in just a few years. He's Rank 8 now, right? Heh, he cultivates so fast. But things aren't looking good. You're too devious, old bastard. I bet that kid will have to watch out for you while also facing the Catacombs. Heh. There could even be other variables!" the God Forger said, looking completely at ease.
The Heaven Suppressing King didn't argue. Variables... He hoped so. This time, he wanted to see a genuine variable. He had guarded humanity for eight thousand years, and he was tired.
"By the way, that kid of yours is pretty stupid. I really don't understand how someone as devious as you could have such a foolish nephew!" the God Forger mocked. His clone had been watching from outside all along. He'd seen that the Heaven Suppressing King wanted his descendant to become humanity's leader, only for Zhang Tao to beat him to it.
The real kicker was that Li Zhen had willingly followed Zhang Tao. Wasn't that infuriating?
Before you continue