"That's it, exchange it!"
Without hesitation, Lu Qingshan quickly checked the information and chose to redeem the item.
Since I'm not planning to use this treasure myself anyway, there's no point in knowing more about it.
Immediately after Lu Qingshan confirmed the exchange, his True Treasure Points balance changed.
The 100 True Treasure Points quota disappeared, leaving only 13 True Treasure Points remaining, which was the remaining portion from the sale of the True Treasure Silvermoon Flowing Sorrow Sword.
The exchange mechanism is quite user-friendly; it deducts the loan amount first, while retaining the True Treasure Points he already had.
"Boom!"
A loud rumbling sound followed.
The stone slab in front of them slowly cracked open from the middle, the crack growing wider and wider, as if there were a bottomless abyss below.
Lu Qingshan glanced down and immediately sensed extreme danger, as if there was something terrifying inside.
Then!
A gray light flashed, and a treasure shaped like an hourglass flew out of the abyss, straight to Lu Qingshan. Lu Qingshan raised his hand and easily caught the hourglass treasure.
The Sinking Rock Hourglass... True Treasure of the Domain Type, it's probably worthy of being stored in the Ancestral God Religion's Treasure Land.
Lu Qingshan observed the appearance of the hourglass.
It was about three feet tall, and its appearance was like that of a rock that had been tempered. It was transparent and gray crystal-like, and its interior was covered with silver patterns like spider webs, which looked like countless galaxies twinkling. At the top of the hourglass, there was a mysterious crystal the size of a pigeon egg, which shone with a gray halo in Lu Qingshan's hand.
From its appearance, it looks like a decorative item.
But the countless tiny, mysterious grains of sand inside are the true core of this treasure.
"A fine treasure!"
Lu Qingshan observed it for a moment, then put the Sinking Rock Hourglass away. This was the first time he had exchanged a treasure from the Human Race Treasury.
After spending all his credit, Lu Qingshan glanced at the huge stone disc that was slowly closing. He coveted many of the treasures inside, but thankfully he could enter it at any time in the future.
Lu Qingshan turned and left the side hall of the city lord's mansion. Venerable Guiyi had already left, and he Teleportation back to Qingshan Residence.
Although the news of Lu Qingshan's return to Chaos City was kept secret, others in the City Lord's Mansion still saw him.
Three days later.
True Yan King received the news and came to visit.
During this meeting, True Yan King was less carefree than before, and instead appeared more reserved and respectful.
There's no way around it... Although Lu Qingshan's strength was also overwhelming before, they were still on the same level, just like how True Yan King treated other King Rank. He didn't feel superior to them. But now Lu Qingshan is Universe Venerable, a whole level above him, and on the same level as his teacher.
" True Yan King, it's only been a short time since we last met, why are you acting so coy? Do you think I'd eat you?"
Lu Qingshan smiled and led the True Yan King into the living room.
"You won't eat me, but you are Universe Venerable."
Looking at the unique aura emanating from Lu Qingshan, True Yan King felt a pang of envy.
"Just Universe Venerable, nothing special... You, True Yan King, have your own chances of becoming Universe Venerable, no need to be so petty. Let's stay the same as before."
Lu Qingshan raised his hand and took out a bottle of Purple Fire Ape Wine.
This was a bottle of fine wine containing 80 billion Hunyuan Unit that King Xue You had previously placed in the Thousand-Vine Star-Eating Grass Divine Kingdom; it was nothing to him now.
" Purple Fire Ape Wine!"
True Yan King's eyes lit up. Sensing that Lu Qingshan's attitude hadn't changed, he felt much more relaxed.
Lu Qingshan poured him a glass of fine wine before smiling and saying, " Zhen Yan, you didn't come to my Qingshan Residence today just to freeload, did you?"
"No."
After taking a sip of the fine wine, True Yan King relaxed considerably. He shook his head and said, "I've come to visit you for two reasons: first, to congratulate you, Myriad Laws King, on your breakthrough to the Universe Venerable; and second, on behalf of two friends..."
True Yan King then recounted the favors his two friends had asked him to do.
"Oh, Black Mist King and King Anju, these two are both renowned King Rank in Chaos City, with extraordinary strength. Why would they be willing to pledge allegiance to me?"
Lu Qingshan was somewhat surprised.
He really didn't expect that after his breakthrough, two Grandmasters who had been granted the King Rank would come to join him, and they were extremely powerful among the King Rank. Even the Nine Swords Venerable only had one such helper.
"The reason is simple: there are many benefits to following you, Myriad Laws Venerable. You have such great potential, becoming Universe Venerable in such a short time, and you will definitely rise further in the future. Following you is promising, and you are also very generous, so you shouldn't mistreat your subordinates... The two of them just happen to lack Universe Venerable backer, and since you, Myriad Laws Venerable, have just broken through and are short of people, they naturally came to join you."
True Yan King spoke the truth and did not mention anything about how the other party revered the Myriad Laws Venerable.
Grandmasters who have been granted the title of King Rank King Rank, especially those with extremely high strength, will not pledge allegiance to a particular person simply out of admiration. Ultimately, it all comes down to self-interest. They will only pledge allegiance to Universe Venerable who can bring them benefits.
The same applies to King Long Yu's allegiance to the Nine Swords Venerable.
Even a few random bits of information leaked by the Universe Venerable would be enough to nearly kill a Peak King- level expert.
"That Black Mist King has been my friend for countless eons, and her potential is no less than mine... The key is that she is an upright person. I can vouch for her; once she pledges allegiance to you, Myriad Laws Venerable, she will definitely work wholeheartedly for you and will not be fickle."
True Yan King knew his old friend well enough to dare to say such a thing.
"As for King Anju, I don't know much about him... He's much older than me. Before I came to Chaos City, he had already been cultivating in Chaos City for countless years. No one has seen him make a move in all these years, but I estimate that he's quite strong, at least no weaker than Black Mist King."
Hearing what True Yan King said, Lu Qingshan nodded slightly and said, "Since you, True Yan King, are acting as an intermediary, I will accept these two."
After saying that, his gaze lingered on True Yan King, and he smiled, "Actually, I still prefer you, True Yan King."
"Ah!"
The True Yan King, who was drinking, almost choked.
He quickly waved his hand and said.
"I can't... According to my heart, I would naturally like to pledge allegiance to you, Myriad Laws Venerable, since if I pledge allegiance to you, I would definitely be able to drink the Purple Fire Ape Wine often. But I already have a Universe Venerable as my backer, and I am also the leader of our Ape-man Race. I am where I am today entirely because of my teacher's training, and I dare not betray my sect."
"No, I don't mean for you to pledge allegiance to me; I want you to become my disciple."
Lu Qingshan smiled and shared his thoughts.
Upon hearing this, True Yan King stared wide-eyed.
"Venerable Wan... Myriad Laws Venerable... you're not joking with me, are you? Our relationship is..."
Before he could even utter the word "friend, "True Yan King was immediately drawn to an object in Lu Qingshan's hand, his gaze seemingly glued to it.
Lu Qingshan casually placed the earth-attribute Beast God Inheritance Token on the table and said, "I know this treasure is extremely important to you, and it could even help you break through to become Universe Venerable. However, it is too precious. Even though we are friends, I cannot easily give it to you. That's why I plan to take you as my disciple. If you become my disciple and help me in the future, I will naturally not be stingy with this Inheritance Token."
"This... this..." True Yan King was completely dumbfounded.
He was certain that this was the Beast God Inheritance Token, and it was even an Earth-attribute Beast God Inheritance Token that matched his own attributes.
This was the treasure he had been longing for.
And just like that, it appeared right in front of me.
Simply by becoming a disciple of... Myriad Laws Venerable, one can obtain this Inheritance Token, receive the inheritance at the Ancestral God Religion, and have a great chance of becoming Universe Venerable...
But...
True Yan King took a deep breath, forcing himself to look away, and said, " Myriad Laws Venerable, this matter is too shocking to me. I need to go back and think about it carefully."
"It's okay, you can take your time to think about it, there's no rush."
Lu Qingshan smiled.
"Then I'll go back and think about it now."
True Yan King glanced once more at the hexagonal token on the table, which resembled a rock, took a deep breath, and stood up, refusing even the Purple Fire Ape Wine.
"Um."
Lu Qingshan simply nodded, watching as True Yan King Teleportation away.
"I've met you, teacher."
"Teacher..."
"Teacher."
Upon returning to his residence, the disciples greeted him one by one, but True Yan King did not respond as usual. As if possessed, he walked into his cultivation chamber and slammed the door shut.
Back in his own little space, True Yan King slammed his hands on the ground repeatedly, creating huge craters before he calmed down a bit.
" The Myriad Laws Venerable actually possesses a Beast God Inheritance Token, and it's even an Earth-attribute Inheritance Token that matches my element! He'll bestow it upon me as long as I become his disciple!!"
True Yan King was very excited and wanted to agree immediately.
But thinking of his people and his teachers, he restrained the impulse.
If one disregards the distinction between lineage and teacher, he wouldn't feel much psychological pressure becoming a disciple of Venerable Myriad Laws Venerable. He simply had a good relationship with Myriad Laws King before, and there were countless examples of teachers and friends in the Primal Universe, with many disciples even surpassing their teachers in skill.
Moreover, the Myriad Laws King is now the Myriad Laws Venerable, a whole level above him, so no one would laugh at him even if he became his disciple.
Not to mention the incomparably precious Beast God Inheritance Token, which even Universe Venerable cannot produce.
But he has his own community, his own teachers... His teachers raised him from humble beginnings, and he cannot abandon them for his own benefit.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh.
After forcing himself to calm down, True Yan King entered the Virtual Universe and arrived at the temple of the Ape-man Race.
The old Old, frail, black ape-man has always been here.
"Teacher."
True Yan King walked to the side of the black, Old ape-man.
" Zhen Yan, your mind is in turmoil. Has something happened?"
The Ape-man Race leader revealed a slight smile.
"Teacher, it's like this... I just went to Myriad Laws Venerable's house to congratulate him on breaking through to the Universe Venerable..."
True Yan King did not hide anything and told his teacher everything that had just happened, down to the smallest detail.
After he finished speaking, the black, Old ape-man suddenly stood up and slapped him hard on the head.
True Yan King staggered from the blow and fell to the ground.
"Teacher, I was wrong. I shouldn't have had such thoughts."
True Yan King quickly admitted his mistake, thinking that his teacher was angry because his ideas had wavered.
"You blockhead!"
The old, Old ape-man looked at True Yan King with exasperation and said, "You still don't know where you went wrong!"
"Teacher, where did I go wrong?" True Yan King's mind was in complete turmoil.
The Ape-man Race chieftain said, "Your mistake was not agreeing to Myriad Laws Venerable's request on the spot. What if things changed and you missed that precious opportunity?"
"Ah."
True Yan King never expected that his teacher would be angry about this.
"That Myriad Laws King became Universe Venerable in just over a dozen epochs. Not to mention the future, he is probably even more powerful than me now. How is it beneath you to be his teacher?"
"In this world, who doesn't strive? Don't even mention you, I, your teacher, strive, the Universe Master strive, the great Giant Axe Founder strive—if the opportunity comes, not seizing it... that would be foolish!"
"It's just a master-disciple relationship. Myriad Laws Venerable didn't say you had to sever ties with me. It's just that you have another teacher. What's the big deal? Would I, your teacher, hinder your future just to save face? Do you think I'm that kind of person?"
"No... no." True Yan King quickly shook his head.
"Then what are you hesitating for? Go to Qingshan Residence right now, go to Myriad Laws Venerable and become his disciple, and get your hands on the Beast God Inheritance Token... From now on, you must not be disrespectful to him, but treat him as you would your master, and do your best for him!"
"Don't feel guilty. Some people might gossip, but do I care? I don't care. My only pursuit in life is to make the Ape-man Race strong. It's too difficult for me to support the entire race alone. I dare not risk my life, I dare not take risks... Every time I open my eyes, countless pressures weigh on me. If you can break through to the Universe Venerable and become the second leader of our Ape-man Race, you can also help me share some of the pressure."
"Teacher, I understand."
True Yan King knelt on the ground, kowtowed fiercely, and then disappeared into the temple of the Ape-man Race.
Watching his disciple leave, the black ape-man sighed, sat down on the ground, feeling both gratified and regretful.
"What a disappointment... We're so poor... Even our most promising disciple got poached."
How could the Ape-man Race leader remain completely unfazed by having his disciples poached by someone of equal caliber? His earlier actions were merely a show for his disciples, intended to avoid putting too much pressure on them.
"I hope Zhen Yan can seize this opportunity to become Universe Venerable. If that happens... compared to the entire Ape-man Race, my personal loss of some benefits is nothing, nothing at all..."
The Initial Universe Qingshan Residence.
True Yan King returned to the place after only a few minutes.
Have you thought it through?
Lu Qingshan asked with a smile.
True Yan King nodded, then knelt on the ground with a thud. "Disciple Zhen Yan greets Master."
"Get up. Although we will be master and disciple from now on, we will still treat each other as before."
After accepting the bow from True Yan King, Lu Qingshan did not put on airs as a teacher. He stood up and helped True Yan King up, and then continued.
"When you see me again in the future, there is no need for you to bow."
"Yes."
True Yan King nodded, but he didn't think so in his heart. Since he had already become a disciple, how could he not show respect?
Lu Qingshan picked up the Inheritance Token from the table and placed it in True Yan King's hand, saying, "Take this token for now. The journey to the Ancestral God Religion is long and may be dangerous. Don't rush there. I will ask Longjing Venerable to come back and take you Ancestral God Religion personally."
(End of this chapter)