Is Nine the Ultimate Number? (First Update, Please Vote)

Before long, news of the battle at Fengming Orchid Pavilion spread far and wide. With the Southern Isle Sect selection drawing near, cultivators across Phoenix Cry Three Thousand Li were as numerous as fish crossing a river.

A Wheel of Life Shore cultivator had slain a Dao Palace Five Viscera cultivator with a single sword strike!

He already possessed the bearing of a holy land's chosen son. For a time, Chen Qiye became a name on everyone's lips.

Then an even more explosive piece of news swept through like a Category Eighteen hurricane. Canghai Old Man of the Northern Azure Grotto-Heaven had wielded an ultimate imperial weapon against the Everlasting Battle Soul in an aerial battle spanning three hundred li. The heavens darkened and the earth dimmed from their clash, and in the end, he fled toward Three-Fork Lake Mouth...

This news was far more shocking than Chen Qiye killing someone above his realm!

Storm clouds were gathering over the Central Plains. It was rumored that the Evolving Immortal Dynasty had dispatched an Immortal Three Slash Dao expert in pursuit, while major worlds and holy lands were also beginning to stir.

Meanwhile, Chen Qiye, the instigator behind it all, remained at Fengming Orchid Pavilion to recuperate as though nothing had happened.

Ye Guxue and Lu Junchu were both injured, and with Dragon Transformation Pool about to open, they each chose to enter seclusion.

"Brother Chen, you really aren't worried at all?"

Holding a large flower-patterned pork hock, Bai Ningbing smiled bitterly. "Even the Evolving Immortal Dynasty has been alarmed this time. Once an Immortal Three Slash Dao expert acts, no one in Phoenix Cry Three Thousand Li can stand against them!"

The Phoenix Cry Mountains were ultimately just a remote corner of the world, no more than a drop in the ocean on this planet. Now that the news had spread, let alone Canghai Old Man being unable to keep the imperial weapon, even Bai Yuanshan—or perhaps even an Immortal Three Slash Dao existence—might not be able to protect it.

"Since it has come, we'll deal with it. Why trouble yourself over it, Brother Bai?"

Chen Qiye snatched the large flower-patterned pork hock and handed it to Little Nannan. "This meat is rich and fragrant. Eat more; it'll be good for your body."

"Mhm, mhm." Little Nannan narrowed her big eyes and gnawed away at the pork hock with loud crunches. She was still muddle-headed about cultivation and understood even less about what an imperial weapon was, so naturally, she did not think too much about it.

Watching Little Nannan enjoy this brief warmth, Chen Qiye found it difficult to imagine the future sea of blood and mountain of corpses that awaited her. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Brother Bai, don't you have six Heavenblood Dragon Scales?"

"I do. Why?"

Bai Ningbing did not understand. He picked up another large flower-patterned pork hock and said, "For the Southern Isle Sect selection the day after tomorrow, Brother Chen, you probably won't even need to participate. Once word of the Orchid Pavilion battle spreads, even Fu Zhan was slain by you. Who would dare compete with you for a spot? We can just meet up at Dragon Transformation Pool then!"

Chen Qiye smiled faintly. After all this commotion, his emotion points had risen at an astonishing speed. The Southern Isle Sect selection now seemed rather unnecessary to him.

"No. I want to bring Little Nannan with me."

Chen Qiye spoke very seriously.

"What?"

Su Manman, who had been walking over from afar, froze upon hearing this and blurted out, "She hasn't even entered the path of cultivation. Wouldn't taking her to Dragon Transformation Pool be sending her to her death?"

"That's right, Brother Chen!"

Bai Ningbing nodded. "Although Dragon Transformation Pool is almost completely free of danger, to activate a Heavenblood Dragon Scale, one must at least open their Bitter Sea..."

Chen Qiye did not answer them. Instead, he gazed intently at Little Nannan's somewhat thin, childish face and asked softly, "Little Nannan, do you want to go?"

Little Nannan nodded, not forgetting to take another bite of the pork hock. "I do, but Little Nannan has a useless body. It's very difficult for me to open my Bitter Sea."

As she spoke, a faint sorrow flashed through her eyes.

"I'll teach you."

Chen Qiye's calm voice left his lips. His gaze abruptly rose toward the night sky, where the stars filled the heavens like a chessboard. The pieces being placed upon it were the destinies of heaven and earth, fortuitous encounters, or perhaps even more unknown terrors...

"But you must understand that this path may be far harder than you imagine."

Chen Qiye thought of that supreme imperial might capable of striking across the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands, then drew a deep breath. "Your fate has already been set in a certain direction. Perhaps I am your fortuitous encounter!"

At his words, Little Nannan stared at him with a faint mist in her large eyes and fell into a daze.

"Silly girl, what are you standing there for? Hurry and acknowledge your master!"

Su Manman smiled and rubbed Little Nannan's little head. "Chen Qiye's sword intent is terrifying enough that if I didn't already have a master, I'd want to become his disciple too..."

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The moment her words fell, the sound of kowtowing rang out.

Su Manman and Little Nannan were both utterly stunned. The sound had come from... Bai Ningbing.

"Master above, please accept three kowtows from your disciple..."

Bai Ningbing flung aside his large flower-patterned pork hock and hurriedly knelt. "I want to learn the sword too..."

"Where's your dignity?!"

Su Manman slapped her forehead and could not resist kicking him. "What sword are you going to learn? You've already perfected the Dao of being 'cheap.'"

The Everlasting Battle Soul returned three days later. In the end, he had been unable to keep Canghai Old Man behind. Beyond Three-Fork Lake Mouth lay the outskirts of the Central Plains, a prosperous region where great powers were as common as dogs. At the first level of the Immortal Platform, he did not have sufficient strength to protect himself, so he could only choose to return.

The matter of the Nameless Immortal Sword could only be set aside for the time being.

Unable to withstand Bai Ningbing's relentless pestering, Chen Qiye had no choice but to reluctantly accept an unreliable registered disciple.

Before Dragon Transformation Pool opened, Chen Qiye had Bai Ningbing gather several secret manuals concerning cultivation. Though he possessed the Heavenly Sword Art, his true cultivation path differed from everyone else's.

For several consecutive days, Chen Qiye immersed himself in a vast sea of books, reading through nearly every technique and Dao pattern possessed by the White Family.

The so-called Bitter Sea was the endless sea of tribulations that obscured the Wheel of Life.

Once cultivators reached a certain realm, the Wheel of Life, which appeared no larger than a palm, could open up an inner world. This world was born alongside the Bitter Sea and existed together with it.

Opening the Bitter Sea meant opening this inner world.

For cultivators to walk the path of defying heaven, they had to struggle against their own Bitter Sea. The passage of time would wear down the Wheel of Life, while the Bitter Sea steadily eroded it bit by bit.

"To destroy the years and cross the Bitter Sea is to become immortal."

Chen Qiye closed the final scroll. The vast knowledge within had all been stored in his mind. With a thought, he entered the system.

Host: Chen Qiye

Realm: First-Stage Martial King (Dao Palace First Viscera)

Experience: 170000/500000

Techniques: Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms, Heavenly Sword Art

Master Value: 200

Master Level: Two Stars

Current Plane: Shrouding the Heavens Plane

Plane Disciples: None

Current Items: Soul-Calming Card, Nameless Immortal Sword

Current Mission: Master Advancement (175 days)

Activated Mission: God Creation Mission

"Bitter Sea, Life Spring, Divine Bridge, Shore."

"The Five Viscera form the Dao Palace, which corresponds to the Five Elements. The Four Extremities correspond to the Four Symbols. Dragon Transformation has nine realms, and nine is also the ultimate number in Daoism..."

Chen Qiye considered it carefully. "This is the cultivators' 'Four Symbols, Five Elements, Nine Realms.' Furthermore, every realm in the Battle Through the Heavens World also has 'nine' stages. Nine remains the ultimate number, and the master star ranks are likewise 'nine.' Could there be some connection between them?"

"The ninth level of the Immortal Platform leads to the Great Emperor..."

Could it be that the tenth level, the Mortal Immortal, is the limit?

"Ding! Notice: Host need not overthink this. Beyond the heavens still lies a vast and mysterious unknown that cannot be explained. Only by truly reaching that step can one truly glimpse chaos..."

"Mm. System, exchange for one Beginner Experience Pill."

With a thought from Chen Qiye, he decided that since Little Nannan could not yet open her Bitter Sea, it would be better to have her take a Beginner Experience Pill directly. Once she entered cultivation, everything would become much easier.