The Divine Silkworm Princess's peerlessly beautiful face was as unruffled as an ancient well, like a pool of water so deep its bottom could not be seen, impossible to fathom.
Su Yu gave another salute. He trusted in her pride as a member of an Ancient Emperor clan.
He said gravely, "I have two wishes. The first is to retrieve the body of this object and make the Emperor Weapon whole. The jar's body is currently in the hands of a Demon Clan cultivator. The man himself is no concern, but behind him stands the Northern Region's greatest outlaw, a Half-Saint of the Dharma Ending, perhaps even a Saint of the Dharma Ending. But he definitely hasn't reached the Saint King realm."
"That is easily done." The Divine Silkworm Princess's expression remained calm as she agreed at once.
During the Primordial Era, she had slain many Ancestor Kings, including quite a few Saint Kings. Naturally, she paid the greatest outlaw no mind.
At her answer, Su Yu felt as though his very soul was ascending. His long-held desire was about to become reality, and an unnatural flush rose on his face.
He forced down his excitement and voiced his second request. "Second, I ask Your Highness to accompany me to bring back the Undying Heavenly Emperor's offspring. The Heavenly Emperor's Son is currently in a holy land of the Human Clan!"
When his words fell, a long silence descended upon the cave. The purple-haired woman stared intently at Su Yu. He did not shrink back, and the two held each other's gaze.
"Do you have a life-and-death grudge with him?" After a long while, the Divine Silkworm Princess knitted her beautiful brows and asked, clearly somewhat reluctant.
As a Heavenly King-level existence, she had long since cultivated the Heavenly Eye divine ability.
Earlier, while Su Yu was cultivating, she had seen through the nature of his cultivation method at a glance: an Ancient Emperor Scripture centered on the path of devouring and transformation.
A Human Clan member claiming he wanted to bring back the Undying Heavenly Emperor's offspring... In her view, he merely wanted to devour the Ancient Emperor's son to further himself.
The Undying Heavenly Emperor's lineage was known as the gods of the Primordial Era and possessed a terrifying foundation. She had no desire to wage an Extreme Dao war against an imperial clan, even if it was a lineage she disliked.
"Your Highness need not take action. You only need to reveal your pressure. When the time comes, all karma concerning Ancient Emperor Mountain will fall upon me!" Su Yu said calmly.
Although it was something of a demand made under the weight of a favor, this matter was simply too important to him. It was worth taking the risk.
Besides, the Fighting Saint Emperor had overturned the Undying Heavenly Emperor's dao grounds in his later years. The Fighting Saint Apes and the Divine Silkworm Clan were branches joined by the same Qi. As the Fighting Saint King's fiancée, she could not possibly side with the Heavenly Emperor's Son.
After several dozen breaths, the Divine Silkworm Princess shook her head and sighed softly, agreeing to the request.
But she also warned Su Yu that only a Great Saint could truly bring out the divine might of an Ancient Emperor Weapon. Every Ancient Emperor clan had an exceedingly profound foundation and must never be underestimated.
A trace of joy appeared on Su Yu's face. It was somewhat beyond his expectations that things had gone so smoothly.
He then explained to the Divine Silkworm Princess that the Undying Heavenly Emperor's descendants had been suppressed by an ancient emperor of the Human Clan. Their combatants above the Great Saint realm had been almost entirely wiped out, and their Ancient Emperor Weapon had also been lost.
"After the Primordial Era, the Human Clan actually produced so many Extreme Dao supremes. Truly awe-inspiring..."
Looking back across the years of Desolate Antiquity, the Divine Silkworm Princess sighed wistfully, deeply moved. The once-weak Human Clan had actually become the ruler of the Big Dipper and produced so many powerful figures.
With the deal settled, Su Yu relaxed as well. "If all goes smoothly, I have a generous gift for Your Highness."
To him, making the Devouring Heaven Demon Jar whole was the most important thing.
This Extreme Dao Emperor Weapon held special meaning for him. It was "his" Ancestral Artifact!
For that, he was willing to pay any price!
With such a great favor to call upon, I can have a Saint King take action. Tu Tian, even if you have a Saint's protection, you won't be able to keep the jar's body! Su Yu thought, his gaze growing ever deeper.
"There's no need. I lack nothing..."
The Divine Silkworm Princess's eyes softened, and a faint smile appeared on her beautiful face. Clearly, being able to settle this karma without too much difficulty pleased her greatly.
Besides, she would remember the favor this young man had done her. A Sacred Fruit and Divine Spring water from a forbidden zone-the combined value of such divine objects was astonishing, enough for an Ancestor King to lay down his life...
"Perhaps I can help Your Highness the Princess Consort draw insight from other things and break through the barrier to become a Great Saint," Su Yu said.
The Divine Silkworm Princess looked at him intently, struggling not to laugh.
Watching a Four Extremes cultivator speak of helping her advance to the Great Saint realm was truly amusing.
The charm of that smile held a thousand kinds of enchantment, like an epiphyllum bursting into bloom, like a green bud opening. Coupled with the pressure of the Saint Dao, the woman at that moment was like an immortal descended into the mortal world, unforgettable to behold.
Even Su Yu, who had lived two lives, was entranced, and an inexplicable yearning arose in his heart.
But he quickly suppressed that desire. She was not a woman he could dare hope for... For some reason, the thought left Su Yu inexplicably dejected, and he recalled how he had pried apart her lips and teeth.
The Divine Silkworm Princess only smiled at the young man's daze, unsurprised. He was truly young, and such a reaction could not have been more natural.
She asked about the Fighting Saint Ape clan. The words "Princess Consort" had stirred her worries, bringing that man from her past to mind and leaving her deeply concerned.
"Your Highness means the Fighting Saint King, I presume. He emerged several thousand years ago and eventually entered a Great Emperor's lineage, where he forged his own path. Your Highness need not worry." Su Yu told her the truth.
Through Amitabha Buddha's legacy, the Fighting Saint King had stepped out from under the imprint of his elder brother, the Fighting Saint Emperor's imperial path. He also wielded the Buddhist Emperor Weapon, the Purple-Gold Divine Vajra. As the master of an Extreme Dao power, his might swept across the Five Regions and his glory knew no bounds. Why would he need anyone to worry about him?
"As for the Holy Emperor's Son, he has yet to emerge."
"That's good..."
The Divine Silkworm Princess nodded, then began asking about the person who held the jar's body. She was decisive and swift by nature and wanted to act immediately to retrieve the other half of the ancient demon weapon.
Su Yu restrained the impatient princess, saying they needed to wait a moment.
"You're going to undergo a tribulation?" The Divine Silkworm Princess raised her delicate brows, seeing Su Yu's current state.
He nodded.
Only then did the broken bronze Buddha statue floating above the Bitter Sea within him sink to the seabed.
He was not as completely unguarded around the Divine Silkworm Princess as he had been around Jiang Taixu.
Jiang Taixu was a man of noble character. This one was different; she was chaotic neutral...
Fortunately, what Su Yu had feared did not happen. Otherwise, it truly would have been drawing water with a bamboo basket-all for nothing. He would have lost the Sacred Fruit, the Divine Spring, and the ancient Buddha forbidden artifact, offended Divine Silkworm Ridge, and ended up with nothing but a corpse...
The two walked out of the cave. With a flick of his feet, Su Yu soared into the sky, his Qi beginning to rise.
Soon, the heavenly tribulation descended.
The sky abruptly became a vast ocean of lightning. Bolts surged down, and thunder rolled like a tide, shattering everything with blinding brilliance. Purple filled the heavens and earth, drowning Su Yu. Even the void was blasted apart and left in ruins, but it was quickly engulfed, for the lightning was too brilliant, its dazzling light filling every inch of space.
Boom!
Mighty thunder shook the world, and purple lightning surged like a tide. This was a world of lightning, capable of destroying all things.
Amid the sea of lightning, a cloud dragon roamed ceaselessly, swallowing and breathing out thunder as it opened up a Chaos Pure Land. Su Yu held the Great Dao Treasure Vase, black chains coiling around his body, and constantly bombarded the heavenly tribulation with his phenomenon.
Knowing the lightning tribulation countered him, he naturally would not be so stubborn as to meet it head-on.
If Su Yu had not brought his phenomenon to minor accomplishment and refined a chaotic dragon spirit, the heavenly tribulation would indeed have been difficult to deal with. Now, however, it was quite simple.
His "Clouds in the Azure Sky, Water in the Vase" phenomenon had reached minor accomplishment. Dragon Qi surged within it, enough to kill a veteran Dragon Transformation cultivator. The Great Dao Treasure Vase could devour the lightning of heavenly tribulation, making it more than sufficient to handle this one.
The lightning tribulation lasted a full day and night before ending.
Su Yu passed through four heavenly tribulations in succession, his cultivation leaping in a single bound to the Third Transformation of Dragon Transformation. His chaotic cloud dragon's power also rose greatly. It transformed, growing to thirty-three feet long, its scales radiating waves of purple light as it coiled around him.
"That phenomenon of yours is very special. I've never heard of anything like it. This dragon is even more extraordinary; it possesses a strand of chaotic power," the Divine Silkworm Princess said, her opinion of the young man rising still further.
Su Yu remained composed and did not let the praise go to his head.
"This is nothing. There are far too many people in this world who can match me. This is still far from enough..."
As he spoke, he suddenly recalled Ji Haoyue's exploit in the original story and considered himself inferior.
A Four Extremes cultivator carrying a Dragon Transformation forbidden artifact to seize the Green Lotus Emperor Weapon-such a thing was rare throughout the ages. He could not do it!
The Divine Silkworm Princess thought Su Yu was being modest and paid it little mind.
She looked at the eternal azure sky, her heart inexplicably brightening. "When shall we set out?" she asked gently.
Death was a new beginning. She had already died once during the Primordial Era. Now that the Divine Silkworm Clan had yet to emerge, she could take this opportunity to settle Su Yu's affairs.
And once those were done... she would have to seek out the karma of the Primordial Era: the Divine Silkworm Clan, that man, and...
"Kun Zhou!" The Divine Silkworm Princess's eyes turned cold, hatred appearing on her face. Her presence surged, Saintly might spilling in every direction.
It was the grudge of her murder. If she ever broke through the Great Saint barrier, she would make him pay in kind...
Chapter 36: The Promise of a Quasi-Emperor
At that moment, Su Yu was absorbing the essence Qi of heaven and earth, paying no attention to the change in the Divine Silkworm Princess.
His body was like seven-colored glazed crystal, clear and flawless. Boundless Source Qi, like divine radiance, baptized his flesh. In particular, the great dragon of his back was warmly tempering his spine. Dao light wreathed the 365 acupoints within his body, and each divine acupoint held a strand of Chaotic Blood, giving off powerful fluctuations of divine power.
A moment later, Su Yu finished his recovery and looked intently at the Divine Silkworm Princess.
Before his eyes were both a beauty and a whole Devouring Heaven Demon Jar.
"Don't you need more time to recover?" The Divine Silkworm Princess's body was slender and light, almost translucent like jade. Seven-colored radiance enveloped her, and her long hair was smooth and soft. She walked over step by step, like a goddess.
She stood in the rosy morning light, graceful and elegant, and looked up at the Devouring Heaven Demon Lid. She felt that it was like a black hole, devouring her divine sense.
"I've stabilized my realm."
Su Yu handed the Divine Silkworm Princess a map of the Northern Region, then pointed out the Holy City's location.
The Divine Silkworm Princess committed the map to memory, then drew a line with a slender, fair jade finger. Runes flowed in an instant, and a spatial rift appeared before them. Terrifying spatial currents swept chaotically through the void.
The two entered the spatial passage together.
Such was the mighty power of an ancient Saint, an existence almost never seen in the Dharma-ending Age, who could roam unchallenged across a region even in the Primordial Era...
In the Holy City, news of the Qilin Divine Medicine that had appeared not long ago continued to spread, and many people were searching for Daoist Cao.
Even the current patriarch of the Desolate Ancient Jiang Family had come in person, hoping to trade with him for a divine medicine.
At the Jiang Family's stronghold in the Holy City, the Jiang Family Holy Lord had spent the past few days sending clansmen out to search, hoping to establish a relationship with Master Cao Yusheng. Even if he could not obtain the complete Qilin Seed, the incomplete Immortal Divine Medicine would do.
In others' eyes, the Jiang Family enjoyed immense glory and honor: its Great Accomplished God King from four thousand years ago had returned, his might bearing down upon the Big Dipper.
But as the patriarch of an Extreme Dao family, the Jiang Family Holy Lord knew the God King's current condition all too well. His origin was depleted, his face withered, and he had disappeared not long after returning to the Jiang Family.
Before leaving, he had instructed them to treat anyone who came to the Jiang Family bearing the Taixu Token with the utmost courtesy. When the Jiang Family Holy Lord wanted to ask more about the imperial legacy in Purple Mountain, the God King ancestor had already left.
This left him quite helpless. The Jiang Family's God King Body of this generation was a disciple of his branch, and he had originally hoped the God King ancestor would teach him the offensive divine art-the Fighting Secret of the Nine Secrets. There was also information concerning the Emperor Scripture and Emperor Weapon in Purple Mountain. All of it was very important to the Jiang Family...
But as soon as the God King ancestor returned, he had gone to Wanchu Holy Land and brought out the previous Myriad Beginning Saintess, then disappeared without a trace...
Thinking again of the God King ancestor's condition, the Jiang Family Holy Lord could not help sighing. He was now desperate to meet Daoist Cao and trade for a Primordial divine medicine, whatever the cost.
A Great Accomplished God King restored to his peak would be enough to sustain the Jiang Family's prosperity for thousands of years...
"Once the God King ancestor returns, go and attend to him," the Jiang Family Holy Lord said gravely.
A silver figure stood behind him. This was the Jiang Family's God King Body of the current generation, not a blood descendant of the family but an outsider adopted into it. Yet he was an invincible seed nurtured by the Jiang Family. Having become the Holy Lord's disciple, he held an exalted position in the family.
Jiang Yifei had yet to clash with the divine body. Otherwise, their relative standing would change rapidly...