After returning to Nine Regions Palace, Luo Feng briefly conversed with Heng Tieshan and the other Saint Realm experts before following Wu Chen to pay his respects to the palace master.
At the very depths of Nine Regions Palace lay the palace's most important restricted area. Ordinary people could not set foot there. Even Wu Chen could only enter when summoned by Shadow God King.
Wu Chen led Luo Feng to the front of a huge yet incredibly crude manor.
This place looked almost primitive.
"Palace Master, Galaxy has arrived." Wu Chen spoke with utmost respect as he waited for a response.
"Wu Chen, withdraw for now. Galaxy, come in." A clear, pure voice came from within the manor, and the wooden gate opened automatically.
"This subordinate takes his leave!" Wu Chen replied. He casually nodded at Luo Feng before leaving.
Luo Feng followed the path at the manor entrance inside.
As he walked, Luo Feng suddenly felt space and time shift. In the next moment, he found himself in a beautiful natural environment. Before him lay a huge lake, and he had landed on a small island in its midst. There was a wooden hut on the island, with some "vegetables" growing beside it. Dry firewood was stacked next to the vegetable patch, and beside the firewood stood a stove with flames burning inside, cooking something in a pot.
Luo Feng looked around, but could not see anyone at all.
"Galaxy, come over here." A voice came from beside the stove.
Luo Feng followed the voice and focused his gaze. Only then did he vaguely notice a figure beside the stove. After looking carefully, he finally found the figure and saw his appearance clearly.
"Galaxy of Nine Regions Palace pays his respects to the Palace Master!" Luo Feng took a deep breath and bowed respectfully.
The palace master of Nine Regions Palace before him looked human. He had two hands and two feet, a slender figure, and wore robes that almost blended into the surrounding environment. His features were incomparably handsome yet extremely cold. His ears resembled fox ears, his features were exquisite and sharply defined, and his hair consisted of seven different, irregular colors that merged with the surroundings.
As Luo Feng looked carefully, that small figure seemed to transform into an entire world—majestic, vast, and boundless. Before such an existence, Luo Feng felt like a grain of star-sand in an endless universe, so tiny that he could almost be ignored.
Luo Feng looked at Shadow God King, while Shadow God King also examined him. In an instant, Luo Feng felt as though it had become extremely difficult to move his body.
"First on both the Azure Dragon Ranking and the Hidden Dragon Rankings. Galaxy, not bad." Shadow God King smiled.
"Thank you for the praise, Palace Master." Only then did Luo Feng feel himself return to normal.
Luo Feng discovered that whenever he shifted his eyes away from Shadow God King and then looked back, Shadow God King seemed to have vanished from his original position. He had to search carefully before the figure became clear again.
Shadow seemed to have completely merged into the world.
Shadow God King seemed to notice Luo Feng's current state. Seeing him repeatedly identify his position, he could not help laughing. "You should know why I am called Shadow God King now, right? I primarily cultivate the Light Origin. The light and darkness within light are as if fused with me. I can conceal myself within heaven and earth. If I wish to hide, ordinary God Kings simply cannot detect me. That is how I obtained the name Shadow."
"I did indeed find that you suddenly disappeared, Palace Master. I had to identify your position carefully before I noticed you. So that's the reason. How incredible!" Luo Feng said.
Shadow God King smiled.
"When I looked at you just now, I sensed some fluctuations from your body. You should have comprehended two Origins already, right? One is the Destruction Origin, and the other is the Time Origin. Being able to comprehend the Destruction Origin is indeed rare." Shadow God King said.
Shadow God King had lived for endless years, yet he had only encountered a few people who had comprehended the Destruction Origin.
"Yes, but I have only grasped a little of their superficial essence." Luo Feng hurriedly replied.
"For an Eternal True God to comprehend Origin Mysteries, comprehension and opportunities are both necessary. Without opportunities, comprehension alone is useless; without comprehension, opportunities alone are also useless. You have comprehended two Origins, especially the Destruction Origin, which shows that your comprehension and opportunities are both quite good. Becoming a Saint Realm expert should not be a problem for you. As for becoming a God King, the odds are low, but there is still some hope." Shadow God King spoke indifferently.
Becoming a God King was far too difficult. Extraordinary comprehension and heaven-defying encounters were both indispensable.
Shadow God King sighed. "Comprehending any Origin is extraordinarily difficult. To become a God King, one must comprehend all ten Origins to an extremely high level. That is harder than ascending to heaven. Throughout the history of the You Mountain Empire, many have become Saint Realm experts, but not a single one has become a God King. They either remained trapped in the Saint Realm or fell midway. Even a genius like Kaser was trapped at the Eighth-Origin, in Endless Reincarnation, unable to advance any further."
Luo Feng listened attentively.
"I guess you are like that girl Mu Lihua, a lifeform from the Universe Ocean. She seized the body of the Primal Universe Origin Will, and you also seized the body of the Primal Universe Origin Will. Is that correct?" Shadow God King looked at Luo Feng with a smile.
"Yes." Luo Feng stared at Shadow God King in shock, his expression changing slightly. He asked doubtfully, "How did you figure that out, Palace Master?"
Luo Feng had never mentioned this matter to anyone, yet Shadow God King had managed to guess it.
"Don't be anxious. The Will of the Original Universe holds no attraction for me." Noticing the change in Luo Feng's expression, Shadow God King smiled and continued, "When you deciphered the Rhinoceros Emperor Puzzle in the third Dragon Tower, the first solution model you created was the Primal Universe Architecture, wasn't it? Back then, when that little girl Mu Lihua created a solution in less than four days, even we were shaken. Only later did we learn that she had based it on the Primal Universe Architecture Model."
"You were even faster than her, so I guessed that you had also used the Primal Universe Architecture energy model." Shadow God King smiled.
Luo Feng suddenly understood. He had indeed used the Primal Universe Architecture Model as a reference. However, his One Origin Beginning was also sufficient to create a solution.
Shadow God King continued, "Seizing the body of the Primal Universe Origin Will is indeed a great opportunity. With such an opportunity, becoming a Saint Realm expert is easy. Becoming a God King remains extremely difficult, but it gives you a little more hope than others. Back then, Tong Yuan saw that little girl Mu Lihua had considerable talent in illusion techniques and had also seized the body of the Primal Universe Origin Will, so he came forward and accepted her as his disciple. Now that I look at it, your potential is much greater than hers."
"I was simply rather lucky as well." Luo Feng was quite modest.
Shadow God King smiled as he looked at Luo Feng, appearing rather satisfied.
"I summoned you today for two reasons. First, I wanted to see the genius of my Nine Regions Palace. Second, You Mountain God King entrusted me with accepting you as my disciple. I am not good at teaching disciples, and my identity is rather special. Originally, I was unwilling to accept a disciple, but after seeing you, I changed my mind. You are a good seedling, and I am somewhat tempted." Shadow God King spoke frankly, making his intentions clear.
"Disciple..." Luo Feng was delighted and was just about to speak.
Shadow God King waved his hand and interrupted him. "There is no hurry. Once you learn my identity, if you are still willing to acknowledge me as your master, you, Galaxy, will become my third disciple."
Shadow God King's expression suddenly grew somewhat complicated as he looked at Luo Feng.
"I am called Shadow not only because of my methods, but also because of another identity I possess. I am an assassin—a powerful assassin."
"Many talented Saint Realm experts have died beneath my blade. Several God Kings have fallen as well. Thus, I have offended many factions. They are constantly thinking of killing me and destroying everything around me. My first two disciples were both Saint Realm experts, yet they still died at the hands of their enemies. I am actually fleeing as well. I was willing to assist You Mountain God King precisely to seek his protection and evade certain powerful enemies."
"If you become my disciple, you may suddenly gain many unknown enemies, and your situation could become dangerous at any time. So you can think it over first."
Shadow God King thought of his two disciples, and regret filled his heart. That was why he had hardly accepted another disciple since then.
Of course, when he saw Luo Feng, he truly felt tempted. Luo Feng happened to use a blade as well, and his Blade Technique had finally found someone to inherit it.
"Teacher, I am willing!" After hearing Shadow God King's words, Luo Feng did not hesitate at all. He immediately knelt.
Luo Feng felt that Shadow God King should be stronger than Mountain Guest. Someone capable of killing God Kings must be among the most powerful of God Kings. Naturally, Luo Feng was willing to have such a teacher.
Moreover, to prevent God King Tong Yuan from making a move, becoming Shadow God King's disciple would naturally make Luo Feng safer.
"Good. From today onward, you, Galaxy, are the third disciple under my tutelage." Shadow God King smiled. He was very satisfied with Luo Feng's temperament. If Luo Feng had shown even the slightest hesitation, Shadow God King would not have accepted him, even if he later agreed.
"Stand up." Shadow God King gestured. "Galaxy should merely be your title, not your real name, right?"
"My real name is Luo Feng. Galaxy is indeed only a title." Luo Feng replied.
"Luo Feng..." Shadow God King nodded and smiled faintly. "My name also consists of two characters: Qing He. You and I are truly fated. I am human, and so are you. I use a blade, and so do you. From now on, my Blade Technique will have an heir."
"The only regret is that when your strength is insufficient, you cannot truly reveal its power before outsiders. However, my requirements for you are simple. Do not follow in the footsteps of your two senior brothers. Before your strength is sufficient, do not reveal that you are a disciple of me, Qing He."
"Disciple understands. I will certainly not disappoint you, Teacher." Luo Feng spoke with firm confidence.
"Mm." Shadow God King nodded in satisfaction. "Your teacher possesses many treasures, but this is merely a Divine Power Clone of mine, and I brought no treasures with me. I have nothing good to give you. I will make it up to you later with a blade. Here is my unique Blade Technique. You can try practicing it first. If you have any questions later, you can come here and ask me at any time."
"Once you receive your title, you can remain permanently in Nine Regions Palace, making it convenient for you to find me."
As he spoke, a memory crystal flew from Shadow God King's hand and landed in Luo Feng's palm.