Supreme Water Treasure

Boundless Desert, one of the core regions of the Hundred Broken Mountains secret realm.

Golden gravel, scorching and hot, whipped up massive sandstorms that lashed against travelers' faces, rolling on in an endless, vast expanse.

"Ptooey! Why did we come to this godforsaken desert? It's nothing but sand, sand, and more sand."

The Nine-Headed Golden Lion spat out sand in disgust, burying its head as it trudged forward with great difficulty.

"We came for the Supreme One True Water, of course. Intelligence reports that a full pool of it is hidden in the deepest part of the Boundless Desert."

Shi Hao lay on the Golden Lion's back, looking quite relaxed and carefree.

"Supreme One True Water? A whole pool of it?! Haha, we're rich!"

The Nine-Headed Golden Lion's nine heads split into wide grins, laughing heartily.

Supreme One True Water is a divine liquid of the water element, containing rich water laws and profound mysteries. It can be used as a primer for holy medicine, to upgrade precious artifacts, and even the gods themselves require it when refining treasures.

For water-element cultivators, it is a supreme treasure that can assist in enlightenment.

Every single drop is worth a fortune. In the outside world, it is an existence that would drive countless old monsters mad, leading them to stop at nothing to obtain it.

"What's so funny? What does me getting the Supreme One True Water have to do with you?"

Shi Hao cast a strange glance at the laughing Golden Lion and kicked its central head, urging, "Lion-er, stop the chatter. Speed up and get to the divine pool as fast as you can. We aren't the only ones eyeing that water."

"Uh..."

The Golden Lion's laughter came to an abrupt halt. It dared to be angry but dared not speak, and after a long moment, it squeezed out a sentence: "I am not called Lion-er. My name is Jin Hong."

"Not Lion-er? How about Goldie, then?"

Shi Hao rubbed his chin, pondering carefully.

Golden Lion: "..."

"How about the title Nine-Spirit Primal Saint? Once you attain the Dao, you shall use this title. As the mount of me, Shi Hao, the world will honor you as a Great Saint in the future."

"Brilliant! Nine-Spirit Primal Saint sounds much more imposing than my grandfather's Nine Spirits King."

"Oh? Then tell me, what exactly is brilliant about it?"

"The brilliance lies in..."

The wind began to pick up, and the figures of the man and the beast gradually vanished into the sky-filling dust and sand.

The desert was boundless. A divine pool radiating vast energy fluctuations shimmered in the depths of the desert, mist swirling and auspicious light spraying forth, weaving into sacred colors.

"Water treasure. This is indeed the aura of a supreme water treasure. The ancient records of our clan are absolutely correct. I can feel my bloodline resonating."

"A whole pool of Supreme One True Water! Heaven truly blesses our Rain Clan. To think that after our recent calamity, we would be granted another chance to rise and recover. With this, our clan will surely produce a supreme Human Emperor and reach the pinnacle of glory."

"Hmph, our clan's existence is even older than the Stone Kingdom. We possess divine blood and are incomparably glorious. The Human Emperor dared to strip our King of his title over a tiny, ruined estate, bringing such immense humiliation upon our Rain Clan."

"In that case, when the time comes, we shall simply break away from the Stone Kingdom and establish our own ancient imperial kingdom in the Desolate Region to rule over a nation."

Several miles away, a group of powerful figures from a great clan gazed into the distance with burning eyes.

Two years ago, due to past events in the Western Frontier, the Human Emperor issued a decree stripping the Rain Clan of their royal title. The Rain King Mansion suffered a heavy blow and had only recently managed to catch its breath.

Unwilling to accept their decline, the Rain King Mansion seized the opportunity of the Hundred Broken Mountains opening to send out experts once again, attempting to capture the legendary supreme water treasure.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Perhaps sensing malice, the golden sands suddenly split open with countless fissures. Snow-white skeletons, some humanoid and some beast-like, crawled out from beneath the ground, surrounding the Rain Clan's party from all directions.

These were the geniuses of various clans who, over the past hundreds of years, had discovered and attempted to claim the Supreme One True Water, only to meet their unfortunate end here and be transformed into skeleton guardians of the divine pool.

"Oh? Has that pool of Supreme One True Water already gained sentience?"

"Excellent. Once it gains sentience, it can be directly converted into our clan's Sacrificial Spirit. A thousand years from now, when it reaches its peak, it may even be possible for it to be canonized as a god, creating another Rain God for our clan."

The Rain Clan experts did not panic, for to ensure the success of this mission, the clan had sent four powerful sealers to accompany them.

"Do not panic. You are to hold off these guardians and buy us time. Half a quarter of an hour will suffice."

Yu Kun, an old man with white hair, issued his orders calmly.

"Yes, Elder!"

The Rain Clan experts responded with a roar, pulling out their precious artifacts to press the attack.

The four sealers remaining behind exchanged glances and quickly set up a small altar. On the altar, they enshrined a dark yellow piece of paper—the Rain God Decree.

Yu Kun and the others knelt on the ground, chanting a long, tedious incantation to activate the power of the ancestor Rain God remaining within the decree.

Using the Rain God Decree as a medium, they informed the sentient Supreme One True Water in the pool that the Rain Clan's ancestor, the Rain God, had also attained the Dao as a water-element spirit. They were of the same kind and would never harm it; the Rain Clan could bring it out of this small world and help it attain godhood.

A moment later, the guardians locked in battle with the Rain Clan experts suddenly froze, turning back into lifeless skeleton frames that sank back into the earth.

A large mass of crystalline divine liquid tentatively darted out from the divine pool, wobbling as it flew toward the altar, casting a hazy consciousness toward Yu Kun and his companions.

For a spirit, the temptation of taking human form and becoming a god was an irresistible lure.

"The technique passed down by the clan truly works!"

Yu Kun and the other three suppressed their inner excitement, immediately increasing the power channeled into the Rain God Decree, striving to convey their goodwill to the Supreme One True Water.

The crystalline divine liquid hovering in the air paused for a moment before finally making up its mind, plunging headlong into an ancient jade tripod placed upon the altar.

"Hahaha, it's done! The opportunity for our clan's rise has arrived!"

Yu Wen, a Rain Clan elder who had been waiting for a long time, immediately stepped forward and firmly sealed the jade tripod with its lid, his face flushed with excitement.

"Many thanks to the Rain Clan for the gift. Qiankun Bag, collect!"

At the same time, an irresistible suction force descended. The jade tripod in Yu Wen's hands suddenly soared into the air and vanished amidst a burst of ten-thousand-foot-long rays of light.

"Our clan's Supreme One True Water!"

"Who goes there? Get out here right now!!"

The Rain Clan experts were driven to madness. This was a supreme treasure capable of producing a Human Emperor for the Rain Clan; did someone want to start an all-out war with them?!

"First came the Human Emperor, then the heavens; the Shi Clan existed even before the Human Emperor. Shi Hao of the Shi Clan greets you all."

Amidst the dust and sand filling the sky, a slender figure sat cross-legged upon the back of a Nine-Headed Golden Lion, a brilliant divine halo glowing behind his head, as if a god had descended to the mortal realm.

The golden lion's entire body looked as if it were cast from gold. It possessed nine heads and was tall and fierce, carrying an air of great majesty with every movement as it paced forward unhurriedly, bearing that god-like figure.

An extremely powerful aura surged forth like a vast ocean, wave after wave of shuddering pressure relentlessly washing over the Rain Clan experts, each wave more urgent than the last.