Passed

After just over a hundred thousand years of cultivation, he had earned the recognition of the Time Origin Law. Such talent was already no less than Heavenly Feather King's—and might even surpass him. As long as he didn't die prematurely, he even had a chance, however slim, of becoming a Venerable. How could that not stir the Venerables' interest?

Now that he had earned the recognition of the Time Origin Law, Ye Muxuan no longer struggled so badly when he fought the Gatekeeper. The gap in his comprehension of the Law of Time was tiny, but it represented a tremendous improvement in the very nature of his law comprehension. It meant his self-created Secret Technique had grown more powerful, advancing by another level—from barely reaching King Rank to officially entering the King Level. It could now be called a self-created "top-tier Secret Technique."

With his self-created top-tier Secret Technique and King-level blade technique, Ye Muxuan could bring his full strength to bear.

After only a few exchanges, a cold glint flashed in Ye Muxuan's eyes. The tip of his blade quivered slightly, and he used the Law of Time to influence the space around him. The long blade clashing against his suddenly faltered.

In the next instant, Ye Muxuan thrust his blade at the Gatekeeper's brow!

The Gatekeeper's head jerked back. He raised his hand and seized his blade... The Law of Time!

A thread of blood ran down from the Gatekeeper's brow. For the first time, he had fallen onto the defensive!

"It's no use. I've not only earned the recognition of the Time Origin Law, I also know a thing or two about other laws." Wind Shadow Blade swept through the air in a flash of bright steel. The First Form of the Two-Part Blade Technique, Wind Severing, had already reached Peak Marquis. Now, infused with comprehension of laws at a higher level, it showed faint signs of reaching Peak Marquis.

The Second Form had even reached King Rank.

Heavenly Feather King had once told him that a World Lord who began creating his own Secret Techniques would generally create about three forms over the entire Immortal level. Even top-tier Secret Techniques were no exception. If someone could create a fourth top-tier form, they could usually use it to become a Venerable.

This fourth top-tier form didn't simply mean four separate moves. It was a fourth move linked together with the first three. In most cases, the third form was already the limit for a King-level Immortal!

That was true of these Peak King Level experts, even those at Limit King Level, and even the very few who were Invincible King Rank within their races!

Throughout the long years, those at Limit King Level or Invincible King Rank who were stuck at the Immortal level and unable to break through would often continue refining their self-created top-tier Secret Techniques, pushing them all the way to their peak in hopes of finding an opportunity to break through the Immortal level and become a Venerable.

As for Ye Muxuan, the First Form was based on the Origin Law of Wind, with the true meaning of cutting through all things. It had already been developed to Peak Marquis. The Second Form had also incorporated his comprehension of the Law of Time, making it a true top-tier Secret Technique!

Using his two self-created Secret Techniques in turn, Ye Muxuan attacked almost frantically. His grasp of the laws grew ever more practiced, and after earning the recognition of the Time Origin Law, his comprehension of it deepened as well.

A prolonged defense was bound to fail!

A flash of bright steel swept around. The Second Form of the Two-Part Blade Technique, Time Chaos, came crashing down!

The strike split the Gatekeeper's defense. In the instant time slowed, the blade slammed into his Origin Bead!

"..." The Gatekeeper lowered his head. His eyes, hidden beneath the mask, drooped as he looked at the blade buried in his chest. Then his dim eyes suddenly lit up.

A hairline crack appeared in the Origin Bead where the blade had struck. It widened, and the bead began to crumble into dust.

When the Origin Bead shattered, the World Lord died!

Through the Eighteenth Layer!

On the road to City Lord Mansion in Chaos City, Ye Muxuan looked at the mansion, several hundred kilometers away. With a single step, he landed at its entrance. He looked up at the three universal characters: "City Lord Mansion"!

"Nine Phoenix, shut down all communication signals. Reply to every email and call request with the same message: I'm comprehending the Chaos Stele!" As he sensed how those three characters seemed to form a world of their own, Ye Muxuan gained further insight into his Law of Time.

"Yes, Master."

Ye Muxuan strode into City Lord Mansion. Not far ahead, he spotted the enormous bronze chamber and Kandeli standing guard before its doors.

"Greetings, Senior. I'd like to comprehend the Chaos Stele now." Ye Muxuan stepped forward and bowed to the kindly-looking Kandeli.

"You've broken through?" The kindly old man smiled at the polite young man before him.

"Yes. I just cleared the Eighteenth Layer of the Heavenly Bridge and earned three chances to comprehend the stele." Ye Muxuan straightened. "I'd like to use one now, before I leave Chaos City."

Kandeli closed his eyes. A few seconds later, he opened them and smiled. His voice had softened a little. "Good. You have three chances. Go on in and comprehend it. No one's inside right now."

"Rumble—" The massive bronze doors swung open, and Chaos energy curled around them, obscuring the interior.

"Thank you!" Ye Muxuan stepped into the chamber. He glanced over the first five diagrams and went straight to the sixth.

Word spread from one to ten, then from ten to a hundred. The news that Ye Muxuan had gone from the Fifteenth Floor to the Eighteenth Layer on his first attempt at the Heavenly Bridge in two thousand years reached not only the World Lords and Immortals who had entered alongside him, but swept through the Human Race's powerhouses as well. It spread into the Hong Alliance and even to the other three Great Peak Races, who were enemies of the Human Race!

At the Virtual Universe Company's headquarters, a snow-white, three-story palace with a pointed roof appeared.

"Come out!"

"Come out!"

"..."

The voices drilled into his mind. Frowning, Ye Muxuan darted out of the chamber, and the voices around his ears faded. Someone was already waiting by the bronze doors outside.

After bowing to Kandeli, Ye Muxuan left City Lord Mansion.

"Nine Phoenix, there should be quite a few messages from the past few days." Ye Muxuan walked slowly toward his gray little house, connecting to the Virtual Universe as he went.

"Master, you have 278 emails and 97 call requests. Heavenly Feather King and White Phoenix Palace Master have both sent emails and call requests." In the villa in the Heavenly Region, Nine Phoenix, perched on Ye Muxuan's shoulder, replied, "I sent the replies as you instructed."

Ye Muxuan opened the screen before him and quickly skimmed through the messages. Just as he'd expected, not only Heavenly Feather King and his teacher, White Phoenix Palace Master, but also Zhendan, Kong Yan, and Li Zheng had contacted him. Many other King-level Immortals and even some Venerables had sent him emails!

Many Venerables knew that White Phoenix Palace Master had taken him on as an informal disciple. But now that they were faced with a genius who had even the slightest chance of becoming a Venerable, they clearly couldn't sit still. They didn't care about ordinary King-level experts, but this kind of genius was an exception. Even though White Phoenix Palace Master was a supreme Overlord-level powerhouse, she couldn't stop others from taking him as a disciple. Besides, no one had ever said that a genius could only have one teacher!