After doubling back several times, Hu Yanbo followed Marquis Rock's directions to a quiet asteroid belt, a relatively stable region with only faint energy tides flowing through it. He finally landed on an enormous blue-black asteroid.
As soon as he found his footing, Hu Yanbo used the Large-Scale Detector to confirm that there were no lurking threats or pursuers nearby. Only then did the sharp aura generated by his high-speed movement subside a little.
Throughout the journey, Marquis Rock had barely been able to take her eyes off Hu Yanbo. Disbelief, awe, and a lingering sense of unreality filled her gaze.
She opened her mouth as though she wanted to say something, but hesitated. There was even a trace of unease in her manner that she had not shown when facing Blood Fang King.
Noticing her unusual behavior, Hu Yanbo spoke first, his voice much gentler. "What is it, Rock? Are your injuries troubling you?"
Marquis Rock quickly shook her head and drew a deep breath. As though finally making up her mind, she bowed slightly and said respectfully, "Not at all. It's just... may this junior presume to ask how I should properly address you, Senior?"
She paused, then explained, "You are now a King-level Immortal, a powerhouse who can gravely wound someone of the same rank with a wave of your hand. Addressing you by name would be improper and disrespectful. Might you... have a kingly title?"
Her attitude had become extremely respectful. She had even begun calling herself his "junior" and asking how to "properly address" him.
Although she and Hu Yanbo were old acquaintances, their friendship was not particularly deep.
On the path of cultivation, those who advanced furthest were teachers, and the strong commanded respect.
Before a King-level powerhouse whose strength far surpassed her own, and who had just saved her life, she could not neglect the proper courtesies.
Hu Yanbo was taken aback at first, then shook his head with a chuckle. His smile held a trace of frankness and... something inexplicable.
He waved a hand. "There's no need to stand on ceremony, Rock. Just call me Hu Yanbo, or Brother Yanbo, as you used to. A kingly title? Heh, to tell you the truth, I haven't had time to make much of a name for myself yet."
Hu Yanbo spoke casually, but to Marquis Rock, his words struck like a thunderclap!
He hasn't had time to earn a kingly title yet?!
There was far too much hidden in that statement!
What did it mean?
It meant that this terrifying powerhouse, who could intimidate alien King-level Immortals, had risen at an utterly astonishing speed!
So quickly that he had not even had time to establish a kingly title of his own that would resound across the vast universe!
Marquis Rock's heart clenched, and her pupils trembled almost imperceptibly.
Just as I thought!
Hu Yanbo has risen recently-perhaps within these past ten thousand years-and soared straight to the heavens!
She suddenly recalled how, tens of thousands of years ago, the Ganwu Universe Country had tried to invite Hu Yanbo to join them and become one of the Three Hundred Kings and Marquises under its ruler.
Back then, the Three Hundred Kings and Marquises had seen Hu Yanbo's refusal as the narrow-mindedness of a lone wanderer who did not know what was good for him!
But now that she thought about it... compared with the terrifying potential and strength Hu Yanbo had displayed, those resources and that support were nothing more than a firefly beside the bright moon!
They would scarcely have amounted to a morsel!
And if the Thirteen Divine Generals could see Hu Yanbo today... see him gravely wound a King-level Immortal with a wave of his hand, then modestly admit amid casual conversation that he had yet to earn a kingly title...
Marquis Rock could almost imagine how priceless their expressions would be!
She forcibly suppressed her shock and conflicting emotions, but her manner grew even more respectful.
"In that case, I... I shall take the liberty of continuing to call you Lord Hu Yanbo."
She truly no longer dared to address him by name alone.
Seeing her insistence, Hu Yanbo did not press the matter. He nodded. "As you wish. Now, tell me Glory's exact condition and the precise coordinates of his hiding place."
At the mention of Marquis Glorious Light, Marquis Rock immediately shook off her tangled thoughts. She respectfully raised her hand, and a World Ring appeared at her fingertips.
Then a faint ball of light emerged from the World Ring. At its center was a figure-Marquis Glorious Light.
"Lord Hu Yanbo, Glory only barely reached Marquis rank, and his immortal body is still far from fully formed and stable," Marquis Rock said.
"Before a true King-level Immortal, he was far too fragile!"
"After just a few direct strikes from Blood Fang King, a large portion of his divine body was annihilated, and he quickly fell into slumber!"
For Immortal Gods, divine body loss was closely tied to their willpower.
Usually, thanks to their powerful wills, King-level Immortals would only fall into slumber after losing more than ninety percent of their divine bodies.
But for many Marquis Immortals, especially those who had only recently reached that level, losing seventy to eighty percent of their divine bodies left them unable to remain conscious, and they would inevitably fall into slumber.
Looking at the slumbering Marquis Glorious Light, the dear companion who had once faced life and death alongside him, Hu Yanbo could not help feeling a surge of complicated emotions.
He had now attained King Rank and seemingly become a powerhouse of the universe.
But... was King Rank really that strong?
Yes. Compared with Immortal Army Lords and Marquis Immortals, King-level Immortals were indeed dominant figures, powerful enough to command great respect within the Human Territory and even in certain Cosmic Secret Realms.
But... that was all!
Once he encountered a peak King-level Immortal, a still stronger Invincible King, or... a Universe Venerable!
He would be nothing more than a slightly larger insect.
Helplessness!
Hu Yanbo never wanted to experience that absolute, despair-inducing helplessness again!
That emotion, so fierce it nearly scorched his chest, instantly became an unwavering drive to act.
Once I awaken Glory, I'll stay here and seek out powerful opponents for life-and-death battles!
After my strength advances further, I'll head to the Outer Domain Battlefield!
That was the true crucible, where powerhouses gathered and opportunities abounded-and where the dangers were greatest!
There, he would pursue the path to becoming a Universe Venerable!
I will take Luo Feng as my disciple, but I must also press forward unwaveringly on my own path to strength!
That thought was crystal clear in Hu Yanbo's mind.
Hu Yanbo looked forward to meeting his future disciple and guiding his growth.
But before that, he had to become strong enough-strong enough to face every storm the future held, and to protect everyone he wished to protect!
Become stronger!
Become stronger, whatever the cost!
Until... I reach the realm of Universe Venerables, and beyond!
At that moment, Hu Yanbo's mindset underwent a tremendous transformation.
When he first arrived in this world and learned the course of the future, his heart had been full of wishful thinking and dependence-he knew what fate held, and what glorious achievements his future disciple, City Lord Luo, would attain.
Back then, his thought had been, I'll rely on this fine disciple, live peacefully under his protection, and share in his glory.
Later, the Prepayment System had arrived, giving him the means to grow powerful rapidly, but his mindset had still not changed completely.
He had thought, I'll do my best to complete the missions and get as far as I can. If things truly become impossible, I'll still have my fine disciple Luo Feng as my final trump card and someone to rely on.
The system was a tool, and Luo Feng was his fallback.
He worked hard, but he had never truly made his own resolve to become strong the absolute core of his being.
But now, after witnessing an old friend on the verge of death, personally experiencing the power of King Rank, and especially recalling his utter helplessness before Demon Hand King-and even before the Universe Venerables he could only imagine...
He finally saw the truth!
The system was an opportunity and a source of support, but never an excuse to coast through life.
Luo Feng was an excellent disciple and a future pillar of strength, but he could never become an excuse for Hu Yanbo to slack off!
A true powerhouse needed the spirit to declare that his fate lay in his own hands, not heaven's!
He needed the resolve to step forward and shoulder the burden himself!
Depending on others... is ultimately an illusion. Only the strength I hold in my own hands is an eternal, unchanging truth!
Hu Yanbo's gaze became incomparably sharp and resolute. That hidden trace of dependence from his past was utterly severed, reduced to ashes!
From this day onward, he, Hu Yanbo, would pursue strength for himself!
To truly take control of his own destiny!
To freely protect everything he wished to protect!
To stand tall among the universe's powerhouses and gaze down upon this vast sea of stars!
He would still take that fine disciple, but it would be an act of appreciation and passing on a legacy from one powerhouse to another-not a weakling's search for shelter and support!
This realization was like a clear spring washing his soul, and like a raging flame kindling a divine fire. It made Hu Yanbo's will purer and more unyielding!
Before you continue