Dominator Emperor

In truth, no one had ever heard of seeing a so-called real ghost. In fact, cultivators never believed in their existence, just as they didn’t believe in the existence of true Immortals.

“Well…” Li Qiye narrowed his eyes and smiled. “It’s hard to say whether real ghosts exist in this world. If you want to know, you could go to the Earth Realm, find a tomb, and crawl inside if you get the chance. You might just meet a real one.”

“Er, on second thought, never mind.” The Suan Tian Daoist jumped in fright. A chill ran down his spine, as if a ghost were truly staring at him.

Li Qiye chuckled and looked into the distance. Arriving in the Gold Realm reminded him of a certain place. He knew of an item that no one had ever obtained, and perhaps he should give it a try.

Just as Li Qiye was gazing into the distance, the Suan Tian Daoist took out a Turtle Shell and began to shake it in his hands.

“What are you trying to calculate now?” Li Qiye saw his old habit acting up again. “Don’t tell me you’re trying to divine the First Evil Tomb.”

“Er…” The Suan Tian Daoist gave a hollow laugh. “I wouldn’t dare try to divine the First Evil Tomb; heavenly lightning would surely strike me dead. Hehe, but while I can’t calculate the First Evil Tomb, I can at least check my own luck. Not the future, not the Celestial Mandate, just my luck. Surely that’s alright? I want to see which realm my luck is best suited for.”

Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu were speechless. This guy was truly a born Calculator; he had to perform a divination for himself no matter what he did. ‘This obsession really needs to be cured.’

“You don’t need to calculate.” Li Qiye shook his head. “If you really want to find a realm that suits you, go to the Fire Realm. It’s suitable for your Heart Demon Clan. Follow your heart, and you will definitely gain something.”

“Really?” Hearing this, the Suan Tian Daoist stopped and asked hastily.

Li Qiye smiled. “You’ll know once you go. Of course, you can also perform a divination for yourself. I’m sure you’ll find it’s not wrong.”

“This junior absolutely believes you, Milord. I will follow your advice.” The Suan Tian Daoist was delighted. He quickly put away the Turtle Shell and asked, “How do I get to the Fire Realm?”

Li Qiye got his bearings, then pointed in a direction. “Head this way. Keep going, and you will find a Dao Platform. Go through the Daoist Door, and you can teleport to the Fire Realm.”

“Thank you for your guidance, Milord.” The Suan Tian Daoist was overjoyed. He bowed to Li Qiye and said, “This junior won’t disturb you any longer. I’ll be on my way to check out the Fire Realm.”

“Go on. You will have a good harvest,” Li Qiye said, nodding with a smile.

After bidding farewell to Li Qiye and Lan Yunzhu, the Suan Tian Daoist headed in the direction Li Qiye had pointed. He had followed Li Qiye into the Secret Realm and had already obtained a Divine Disc that satisfied him greatly. Now, he wanted to explore on his own and see if he could stumble upon a fortuitous encounter that was truly his own.

After watching the Suan Tian Daoist leave, Lan Yunzhu asked Li Qiye, “Where are we going now? Should we rendezvous with my master and the others?”

Li Qiye smiled and looked at Lan Yunzhu. “Do you want a Heavenly Destiny True Stone?”

“A Heavenly Destiny True Stone?” Lan Yunzhu shook her head. “I already have my own Lifebound True Artifact, and it was forged from a very good Heavenly Destiny True Stone.”

The Heavenly Destiny True Stone she spoke of was definitely an extraordinary one. After all, the Qianli River was an Emperor Immortal Gate, so the stone possessed by its successor would certainly be top-notch.

Li Qiye said with a smile, “But there is an even better Heavenly Destiny True Stone here, one that is absolutely worth having—if you have the fortune to obtain it, of course.”

“Uncle, don’t you dare lie to me.” Lan Yunzhu shot Li Qiye a playful glare, a smile on her face. “My Lifebound True Artifact was refined from a Heavenly Destiny True Stone with Eight Dao Celestial Essence. It’s only a little bit worse than one with Nine Dao Celestial Essence. Even the Lifebound True Artifact of the Ten Thousand Bones Throne is only slightly better than mine. Its Emperor’s Spear is just nine dao.”

One had to understand that for a Heavenly Destiny True Stone, Nine Dao Celestial Essence was the absolute limit. Thus, a nine-dao stone was considered the best. No wonder Lan Yunzhu said her Lifebound True Artifact was forged from a “very good” stone; in fact, she was being quite humble. An eight-dao Heavenly Destiny True Stone could already be considered a priceless treasure. As for a nine-dao stone, it was something one could only hope to encounter by chance, but never actively seek!

Li Qiye shook his head. “Girl, the strength of a Lifebound True Artifact is often not determined by the number of dao in the Heavenly Destiny True Stone used to forge it. In fact, whether a stone is good or bad isn’t necessarily decided by how many Great Daos it gives birth to. It’s not always the case that the more Celestial Essence, the better the stone.”

“Throughout the ages, not all Immortal Emperors’ Lifebound True Artifacts were forged from nine-dao Heavenly Destiny True Stones. In truth, many truly invincible existences didn’t pursue nine-dao stones, because a Lifebound True Artifact forged from a stone with the most Celestial Essence is not necessarily the most powerful,” Li Qiye said.

Lan Yunzhu glanced sideways at him. “Uncle, I know that. My master explained this basic knowledge to me when I first started my cultivation. There is only the most suitable Heavenly Destiny True Stone, not the most powerful one. The number of Celestial Essences a stone has is just a way for people to distinguish the Great Daos contained within, not a way to classify the stone’s quality.”

“Uncle, you don’t need to explain this point to me,” Lan Yunzhu said, glaring at him lightly. “Take Bu Zhan Immortal Emperor, for example. His Immortal Emperor True Artifact was refined from a Heavenly Destiny True Stone with only one Celestial Essence, yet he was still invincible across the Nine Heavens and Ten Lands. So, there is no most powerful Heavenly Destiny True Stone, only the most suitable one.”

Indeed, the deeds of Bu Zhan Immortal Emperor had been told with relish for generations. His Lifebound True Artifact being refined from a one-dao Heavenly Destiny True Stone was considered a great miracle among Immortal Emperors.

“You’re right about that. For a cultivator, a suitable Heavenly Destiny True Stone is indeed more important than anything else,” Li Qiye said with a smile. “However, there are nuances to these stones. In fact, there always have been. For example, take two Heavenly Destiny True Stones, both with one Celestial Essence. If one contains the Flame Path and the other contains the Vermilion Bird Path, which one do you think is stronger? Assuming both are Fire Attribute Heavenly Destiny True Stones.”

“Of course I know that. If a cultivator practices the Celestial Fire Life Technique, then the Flame Path would be better. If they practice a Firebird-type Life Technique, then it would definitely be the Vermilion Bird Path,” Lan Yunzhu said with a grin. “Uncle, don’t test me on this. It’s common knowledge. Just like you said, there’s only the most suitable Heavenly Destiny True Stone, not the most powerful one.”

“Alright then. What about two Heavenly Destiny True Stones, both with two Celestial Essences? One has the Flame Path and the Mystic Ice Path, while the other has the Vermilion Bird Path and the Firebird Path. Which stone do you think is stronger?” Li Qiye asked with a smile.

“Well…” Lan Yunzhu pondered for a moment before saying, “If two cultivators were practicing the aforementioned cultivation techniques, the second stone would definitely be stronger. The first one involves the clash of water and fire. Even if a cultivator practices the Celestial Fire Life Technique, they would still be restrained. The second stone’s Vermilion Bird Path and Firebird Path both belong to the firebird category, which would multiply the power of a Firebird-type Life Technique.”

“As expected of the Qianli River’s successor. Not too dumb,” Li Qiye said with a smile.

Annoyed, Lan Yunzhu stomped hard on the tip of Li Qiye’s foot. She glared at him with her beautiful eyes and said, “Uncle, what’s that supposed to mean? If you dare tease me again, I’ll show you!” As she spoke, she ground her pearly teeth, putting on a fierce act.

Li Qiye smiled faintly. “Alright, girl, let me test you again. Just as you said, we have two cultivators, one practicing the Celestial Fire Life Technique, and the other a Firebird Life Technique. We assign them two Heavenly Destiny True Stones as before. This time, both are three-dao Heavenly Destiny True Stones. One possesses the Flame Path, the Mystic Ice Path, and the Cyan Yang Path. The other possesses the Vermilion Bird Path, the Firebird Path, and the Samadhi True Fire Path. In the hands of these two cultivators, which Heavenly Destiny True Stone do you think would be stronger?”

“Well…” Lan Yunzhu couldn’t help but ponder for a moment. “Logically speaking, the latter are all fire-type paths. Although the Samadhi True Fire Path isn’t a firebird path, it can clearly make the other two Celestial Essence paths stronger. As for the first Heavenly Destiny True Stone, although the Cyan Yang Path is also a fire type, but…”

“…the Mystic Ice Path clearly clashes with the Cyan Yang Path and the Flame Path. Even if the Cyan Yang Path and the Flame Path are complementary and would multiply their power, their strength would still be weakened due to the restraint from the Mystic Ice Path. In theory, the second Heavenly Destiny True Stone should still be stronger.”

As the successor of the Qianli River, Lan Yunzhu was naturally very knowledgeable in this area. She explained her reasoning eloquently, and her words were quite logical.

“That’s where you’re wrong.” Li Qiye shook his head. “If the cultivator practicing the Celestial Fire Life Technique controls their technique properly, then when this Heavenly Destiny True Stone is being refined into a Lifebound True Artifact, the three Celestial Essences within it will undergo a transformation. The Cyan Yang Path will become a Furnace Cauldron to refine the Mystic Ice Path. When the Mystic Ice Path fuses with the Flame Path, they will ultimately achieve a balance of yin and yang. Thus, an unprecedented Supreme Path of the Cyan Yang Cauldron’s Yin-Yang is born! With this True Artifact, that cultivator’s Celestial Fire Life Technique will become the most domineering Life Technique in the world.”

“For real?” Lan Yunzhu asked doubtfully upon hearing his explanation.

Li Qiye smiled. “Of course, it’s real. This theory is called Celestial Essence Integration. When a Heavenly Destiny True Stone is being refined into a Lifebound True Artifact, several Celestial Essences are fused together to form a brand new Celestial Essence Path, one that is more powerful and astonishing. Of course, Celestial Essence Integration has very strict requirements. A Heavenly Destiny True Stone that can nurture compatible and fusible Celestial Essences is extremely rare—even rarer than a Heavenly Destiny True Stone with Nine Dao Celestial Essence.”