Water Domain

"I... I am a planet lord recognized by the Black Dragon Mountain Empire! If you kill me, the empire will never let you off!" The True Blood Lord's voice trembled as he forced himself to speak.

"Heh."

Bai Kuangren let out a low laugh, the sound laced with undisguised mockery.

"Within the Black Dragon Mountain Star Sector, there are not a few World Lords I've crossed hands with. Aside from Tian Chen, who can suppress me, the rest still fall far short."

"As for Immortals? Do you think those existences would personally show up for a Universe Realm like you?"

This was no arrogance. Among the World Lords of the Black Dragon Mountain Star Sector, Bai Kuangren's strength, even if it didn't rank in the top five, was firmly within the top ten.

Let alone killing a Universe Realm planet lord—even if it were a Domain Lord, as long as they weren't from the royal family or the four major organizations, killing them was no big deal. Who would dare seek revenge against him?

After subduing the True Blood Lord, Bai Kuangren turned his gaze to Bai Yuan, his eyes filled with deep approval.

"To comprehend the second level of the Gold Domain at such a young age—work hard, and you might even touch the threshold of the fundamental laws while still in the Star Realm."

"I can tell you for certain: from ancient times to now, no one in the entire Blade Clan has ever achieved this. If you do, it means you are the most talented person in the Blade Clan's history."

Bai Kuangren was aloof by nature, and there were few people he truly acknowledged from the bottom of his heart.

And now, Bai Yuan was one of them.

Back in the day, he himself had only comprehended his domain at the sixth level of the Planetary Realm, and didn't step into the second level until after advancing to the Star Realm.

"This junior will do his utmost, living up to your expectations." Bai Yuan said respectfully.

At first, he thought Bai Luoyan was the one making a move against him, so he had tentatively sought Bai Kuangren's help.

Who would have guessed that Bai Kuangren happened to be meeting an old friend in the Black Dragon Mountain Star Sector? Upon receiving the message, he agreed without hesitation.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have agreed to come here with Kulu.

"I'll take this man away first. Once matters are settled, I'll come find you." Bai Kuangren nodded.

With those words, he grabbed the True Blood Lord, his figure flickering as he vanished from the spot.

Bai Yuan stood still, his gaze falling on Kulu's gradually cooling corpse, a complex surge of emotions rising in his heart.

Kulu was, after all, a third-tier elite of the Hundred Tiger Tower. He had a bright future ahead of him—if he had continued cultivating along the right path, he might have become a powerhouse in his own right one day.

But now, like a withered leaf falling silently, he had perished without a sound in this dark cave.

"Talent, background, opportunity... sometimes they can't outweigh a single wrong thought, a single misstep."

Bai Yuan slowly crouched down and gently closed Kulu's still-open eyes.

Then he walked out of the cave, contacted Pusis, and told her of Kulu's death.

Pusis was equally shocked, but there was nothing she could do.

The Hundred Tiger Tower didn't raise flowers in a greenhouse.

Elite disciples, while receiving more resources, also had to constantly carry out dangerous missions, digging out their potential at the edge of life and death.

Thus, the fall of elite disciples was not uncommon.

But when it actually happened to someone close, she still felt dazed.

A companion who had been laughing and chatting not long ago was gone in an instant.

After ending the communication, Bai Yuan returned to the castle and began to sort through the gains and insights from this battle.

"Water's flow is formless, ebbing and rising, ultimate softness..."

Tai Chi was inherently divided into Yin and Yang aspects.

The Gold Domain represented "ultimate hardness," and the Sharp Metal Thirty-Three Slash he cultivated also belonged to the fierce and rigid path.

As for the "ultimate softness" aspect, it had always been his weak point.

There was no helping it—his cultivation time was too short; he couldn't cover everything.

In this battle, he had personally experienced the Water Domain, and at the third level at that, with all its vastness and transformation.

That state of softness with resilience, yet embracing all things, stirred countless ripples in his heart.

As inspiration surged, Bai Yuan hesitated no longer.

Opportunities were fleeting—this was the moment to comprehend the Dao!

"System, use Enlightenment!"

Boom!

It was as if a silent thunderclap exploded deep within his consciousness. Thoughts surged endlessly, and every detail from the previous battle replayed with crystal clarity.

Shua shua shua!

Pale blue water ripples spread outward from him, rapidly expanding.

Then, the ripples grew more solid.

At the same time, streaks of golden light suddenly pierced through the water, casting a flowing golden sheen across the entire pale blue surface.

Gradually, the water ripples and golden light ceased to clash, instead slowly merging and calming.

At last, the pale blue water ripples faded from sight, and the golden halo quietly dissipated as well.

Bai Yuan opened his eyes, a sharp glint flickering within them like profound starlight.

"Ha ha ha ha..."

He couldn't hold it in any longer and burst into loud laughter.

The gains this time far exceeded his initial expectations.

He had originally thought that comprehending the Water Domain through this battle would already be his limit.

Unexpectedly, not only did he comprehend the Water Domain, but he also smoothly fused the two domains of gold and water together.

Though it was only a preliminary fusion, he had already taken a crucial step forward.

The fusion of two basic attribute domains was certainly no match for high-level laws like time and space, but if cultivated to the extreme, it would still be immensely powerful, enough to contend with a lower-level law that had just entered the threshold.

Of course, all of this depended on Bai Yuan being able to keep walking down this path.

Time passed in a flash, and another two days went by.

On this day, Pusis and a few others, after finishing packing up Kulu's corpse, took the initiative to approach Bai Yuan.

"Do you know? You've already made a name for yourself inside the Hundred Tiger Tower. No, I should say, your name has spread among the major forces of the Black Dragon Mountain Star Sector."

"The other three organizations, the sixteen families, and even the two sacred lands have all caught wind of it, more or less."

"Huh?" Bai Yuan was taken aback. "Is it because my record in the Battle Space was exposed? But that shouldn't be a big deal—just hitting nine stars in two days, is that really worth spreading around?"

Pusis gave him a strange look. "I suspected back then that 'Yuan' was you, and now it's confirmed, but that's not the main point."

"Then what is the main point?" Bai Yuan asked.

"The main point is that senior Bai Kuangren from your clan has been singing your praises to the skies among the World Lord circle. Almost every World Lord he's close with knows about it, and then word spread from one to another... Now, several forces are planning to send their disciples to test your strength."

Bai Yuan's mouth twitched wildly. He really hadn't expected that senior Bai Kuangren would have such an interest.

He had no idea that Bai Kuangren had come looking for him yesterday, and seeing that he was still in seclusion cultivating, had a sudden inspiration and arranged some opponents for him, all as a form of training.

And incidentally... he also wanted to show off in front of a few old friends.

"You all always brag to me about how amazing your disciples are—well, the junior in my clan is no worse than yours!"

"Every single one of you, as long as you're at the Planet Realm, can come challenge him. If my clan's junior loses, I'll give each of you a hundred billion Universe Coins!"

"On the flip side, if my clan's junior wins, each of you gives me a hundred billion Universe Coins."

Those were Bai Kuangren's exact words.

And it was precisely this statement that stirred those World Lords into nodding in agreement, all of them curious to see just how capable this junior he spoke of really was.

As for a hundred billion Universe Coins, roughly equivalent to thirty-three trillion Ganwu Coins, it was almost enough to buy nearly fifty thousand ordinary life planets.

Some Domain Lords who were weaker and hadn't joined any major force might have their entire net worth amount to just that.

But in the eyes of these World Lords, a hundred billion Universe Coins was merely pocket change.

Spending it was no big deal—it was just buying some entertainment.