A Heavy Offense, Lightly Handled

Zhang Xuezhou felt that his head was like a pressure cooker, and the malfunctioning Tianchi-Tianchi bridge had become the pressure relief valve on the pressure cooker.

Once the pressure inside Zhang Xuezhou's body exceeds the threshold, this pressure relief valve will activate to release the pressure.

Under these circumstances, it became difficult for him to improve his cultivation, and a transformation in his cultivation was out of the question.

"What a pity!"

Zhang Xuezhou consumed a large amount of Drunken Peach and Longevity Fruits, along with Nine Treasures Wine, which created conditions similar to those for cultivating the Human Pill. His innate ability to continue advancing was limited by his physical condition, making it difficult for him to progress further, which he found extremely regrettable.

The Emperor even helped him break through a minor realm after reaching the Divine Ability Realm.

When Zhang Xuezhou regained consciousness, he sighed with regret and bowed again to the Emperor.

"Master, as soon as I heard from Cai Ma that you missed me, I immediately set off. However, I was unlucky and failed to find the Sacred Land; instead, I ended up in Xiniu Hezhou..."

Upon meeting the Emperor, Zhang Xuezhou immediately launched a campaign of suffering, recounting all the hardships he had endured along the way.

Of course, this might be a little different from the hardships the Emperor imagined. After all, Cai Ma traveled to Chang'an on foot, taking several years to make the round trip, while Zhang Xuezhou only took a month in total. Even the hardships have their limits.

"You've indeed gone astray from Chang'an City to the Mahabodhi Temple," the Emperor said. "Go to the Heaven and Earth Cauldron and leave a drop of your Essence Blood to cast a spell. Once you're in place, you won't get lost again."

The fact that the holy son of Kunlun Sacred Land couldn't find his way back is a joke. Zhang Xuezhou may have set an absurd record that will be hard for anyone to surpass.

"Zhu Jiuyin summoned you last time..."

Zhang Xuezhou has had a miserable life these past few years. In addition to listening to Zhang Xuezhou's complaints along the way, the Emperor also wanted to hear about how Zhang Xuezhou was being summoned by Zhu Jiuyin, whether he had broken free from Zhu Jiuyin's control, and what news was involved with Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty.

Just as he was about to ask for clarification, a deafening roar that ripped through space resounded from the Kunlun Sacred Land.

As soon as the voice faded, the space inside the brewery surged, and the emperor and empress, holding tiger banners, appeared with furious expressions.

"The longevity fruit trees in Wantao Garden have been uprooted, and even some improved 'Drunken Peach have been eaten whole, skin and all!"

Originally, it was a ceremony to send off the demonic body of the Golden Crow Great Emperor, but when the Empress sent the body to the Longevity Fruit Tree, all she saw was a deep pit.

Apart from some skeletons, there was no trace of the Longevity Fruit Tree in the deep pit.

The Longevity Fruit Tree is a wondrous tree in the Kunlun Sacred Land. Whenever a great god passes away and enters into enlightenment, after the Longevity Fruit Tree absorbs the body of these great gods, a fruit that looks just like a human will grow on the tree.

This fruit tree is regarded by many great gods of the Kunlun Sacred Land as a symbol of reincarnation and rebirth, and it is cared for by special people.

"Where is Zhenyuan?" the Emperor asked.

"He's vanished! He's not in Peach Garden Palace!" the Emperor and Empress replied angrily. "He shouldn't be in Kunlun anymore."

"It seems he has also chosen to break the Oath Incantation and leave the Heavenly Court," the Emperor sighed. "Let him go, and take the tree with him. After all, he was the one who took care of that Chaos Spirit Root Tree. It would be difficult for anyone else to continue cultivating it!"

"But... but what if the Golden Crow and the others pass away?" The Empress roared, "Without the Longevity Fruit Tree, the Golden Crow will never be able to reincarnate!"

"Whether it's you, me, or anyone else, we all know that the dead cannot be brought back to life. Reincarnation is merely our hope, not a reality," the Emperor shook his head and said. "If the Longevity Fruit Tree could truly grant us rebirth, why wouldn't I die first?"

"Can..."

"No problem!"

The Emperor waved his hand, indicating that the situation was not unacceptable.

People who spend a long time in the Western Kunlun often do unconventional things due to the monotony and loneliness.

It is extremely rare that Divine Lord Zhenyuan has been able to stay in the Western Kunlun for so long.

"Zhenyuan's time is not far off; he must have been filled with fear to do such a thing," the Emperor said. "Let him take the tree with him!"

Sigh~

The Emperor and Empress let out a long sigh.

This left Zhang Xuezhou was standing to the side, somewhat dumbfounded.

He had a hundred petty schemes up his sleeve, but Zhang Xuezhou never expected that the Emperor and Empress would not hold such a grudge.

Perhaps it was due to the influence of the Golden Crow Great Emperor, or the influence of the old Divine Lord Zhenyuan, or the fact that the Emperor and others could not easily leave the Western Kunlun Holy Land, or other reasons, but this matter of stealing fruit and taking the tree was dealt with lightly and let bygones be bygones, without even a word being mentioned about the many Drunken Peach in the Peach Garden.

"Arrange for Xuan Nu and Bi Xia to replace Zhenyuan at Wan Tao Yuan," the Emperor sighed. "The people of the Sacred Land have fallen apart; only you still have some useful people around you!"

"Women find it even harder to remain untainted in chaotic times; they simply have nowhere else to go!"

The Emperor and Empress suppressed their anger and replied, having no choice but to accept the Emperor's arrangement.

"Where can we go now?!"

The Emperor replied.

Aside from transcending the Three Realms and gaining complete freedom, the Emperor has no way to break his past vow.

Others can leave Western Kunlun, but the Emperor, as the person in charge, cannot leave.

The Emperor does not hinder others' future prospects; if the Empress has somewhere else to go, he will not even stop her from leaving.

"Your Majesty, please consider more feasible solutions!"

The emperor and empress were still angry, but when the emperor sighed, they felt most of their anger dissipate.

Divine Lord Zhenyuan was not the first person to leave Kunlun. The fact that he remained loyal to Kunlun Sacred Land for so many years, even into his old age, is already a testament to his unwavering loyalty.

Of course, the Emperor and Empress also had to say that Divine Lord Zhenyuan hadn't done anything significant in the past, since the other party belonged to a different era and, despite possessing the strength of a peerless genius, had never participated in the competition.

At this time, Divine Lord Zhenyuan left Western Kunlun. The departure of this former number one god did not cause the Empress any particular sense of loss, far less than the passing of the Golden Crow Great Emperor.

After the Emperor had spoken to her for a while, she calmed down and also persuaded the Emperor. Then she glanced at Zhang Xuezhou.

"I haven't seen my master's wife for a long time, and I've been missing her constantly. Today, I'm so glad to see her again. She looks as beautiful as ever!"

Upon seeing the Emperor and Empress, Zhang Xuezhou quickly bowed.

With the passing of the Golden Crow Great Emperor and the departure of Divine Lord Zhenyuan from Western Kunlun, this was clearly not a good time for flattery, so Zhang Xuezhou could only offer a polite and conventional remark.

But his words still made the Emperor and Empress nod.

"Once you and your students are reunited, you are welcome to visit my Jade Pool Palace when you have time!"

The emperor and empress extended an invitation before waving the banners behind them.

The space surged like a tide, and the figures of the emperor and empress holding flags flashed by.

"Your wife's abilities are truly remarkable; she can go anywhere she wants with ease," Zhang Xuezhou boasted.

"It's just the benefit of treasures," the Emperor waved his hand and said, "Sixty percent of your master's wife's strength comes from treasures. Who knows what kind of great loss she'll suffer if she's targeted in the future!"

"Baby..."

"External means cannot last!"

Zhang Xuezhou was about to say that treasures also count as strength, but the Emperor then denied it.

"Only abilities that truly originate from oneself are fundamental!"

The Emperor did not teach Zhang Xuezhou much, but as Zhang Xuezhou's teacher, he obviously would not instill wrong ideas in him regarding cognitive aspects.

"We can use external things for temporary convenience, but we can't possess such abilities forever. Relying on treasures can only make us powerful for a while, and ultimately it won't last," the Emperor said.

"The teacher is right!"

Zhang Xuezhou thought external things were wonderful; he really enjoyed the temporary convenience they provided.

He even relied on the Suihou Pearl to act arrogantly for a time, and that feeling was simply fantastic.

But Zhang Xuezhou did not wish to refute the Emperor.

Each stage of life brings its own set of goals and its own State of Mind.

He agreed with what the Emperor said, and that he might move in this direction in the future, but for now he would obviously take the route of external assistance.

If the Emperor permitted, Zhang Xuezhou even considered waiting until the two bridges of Heaven and Earth were more stable before combining external materials, using the Drunken Peach, Longevity Fruit, and Nine Treasures Wine to form a ' Human Pill ', thereby elevating his cultivation level.