Myriad Dragon Divine Sovereign

BANG!

Just then, Wen Shibei’s entire body turned a deep, bruised purple. Blood erupted from his skin in a terrifying display before he exploded outright.

”He’s dead?!”

Everyone’s hair stood on end, their bodies trembling.

Nie Shuang took a deep breath. ”Wen Shibei has stopped breathing.”

Nie Shuang’s words struck their hearts like a heavy hammer. They had only been in the Thousand Rivers Secret Land for a few short days, and already two people were dead.

Everyone lowered their heads, a wave of sorrow washing over them.

Wen Tongyu’s face flushed red as he glared at Yann Chuxue. ”Why? Why did this happen?”

Yann Chuxue’s gaze was cold and devoid of emotion. She said faintly, ”That is a question for your Wen Family. Why is it that you share the same surname, yet your bloodlines have no affinity whatsoever?”

Wen Tongyu breathed heavily, his eyes locked on Yann Chuxue. In the end, he just let out a heavy snort and said nothing more.

.......

「In the Imperial City of the Celestial Martial Country.」

The people of the Celestial Martial Country were immersed in an atmosphere of sorrow so palpable the very air seemed to thicken.

Wen Xu’s brows were tightly furrowed, his heart clenching. ’How can this be? How could Shibei and Tongyu not share the same blood? Impossible... Could it be that Fourth Brother really did just find Shibei and bring him back?’

Wen Shibei had not grown up in the Wen Family from the start. He was brought back at the age of three by Wen Xu’s fourth brother upon his return from his travels. Not many years later, Wen Xu’s fourth brother passed away.

Ling Yao stared blankly into the distance for a moment before sighing wistfully. ”This Tong Tian is too much of a monster. For the next several decades, will our Celestial Martial Country continue to be devoured bit by bit by the Divine Wind Country?”

Liu Ying shook their head from the side. Even their own star pupil, Wen Tongyu, couldn’t withstand a single move. This Tong Tian was indeed monstrously talented.

The nation’s decline, its cycles of prosperity and ruin, its honor and disgrace—these thoughts weighed heavily on everyone’s minds, refusing to dissipate.

「In a stone cave within the Thousand Rivers Secret Land.」

Wen Qingye slowly walked out. By now, his injuries had mostly healed, and his cultivation had improved further. Although he had not yet reached the Refining Spirit Fifth Layer Heaven, Wen Qingye was confident that with enough time, he would reach it soon.

The Ice Python’s injuries were too severe, and it had fallen into a deep slumber. It was unknown how many years it would be before it woke up.

Wen Qingye exited the cave. Its location was well-hidden, and it took him a while to navigate his way out.

It was now evening. Rays of sunset glow shone in the sky, filtering down through the shadowy leaves.

A golden afterglow blanketed the earth, causing the dead leaves on the ground to radiate a soft, captivating halo.

Wen Qingye walked forward, sword in hand.

This was the Ancient Dao, the path leading to the ruins of the Ancient City.

The Array Disc was located within the ruins of the Ancient City. Therefore, to pass through the Thousand Rivers Secret Land, one had to obtain the Array Disc, and to do that, one had to go to the ruins of the Ancient City.

But the Ancient Dao was fraught with danger. Not only was it teeming with Demon Beasts, but it was also a place where geniuses from the various countries clashed, as it was the only path leading to the ruins of the Ancient City.

The Ancient Dao was long. Wen Qingye had already been walking for five days.

Suddenly, Wen Qingye sensed something approaching. Its steps were light, and its speed was incredibly fast. If not for his keen senses, he would have had a hard time detecting the Demon Beast.

’A Refining Spirit Fifth Layer Heaven Demon Beast... a Purple-striped Beast.’

In the distance, a ten-foot-long Demon Beast clung to a tree trunk. Its entire body was covered in purple stripes, and it was perfectly still, its eyes locked onto Wen Qingye. The Purple-striped Beast was known for its speed, surpassing even some Demon Beasts at the Refining Spirit Sixth Layer Heaven.

In addition to its extreme speed, the Purple-striped Beast also possessed immense explosive power.

The Purple-striped Beast tensed its limbs.

SWOOSH!

With a single leap, the Purple-striped Beast landed on another tree. It could already see Wen Qingye in the distance through the gaps in the dense leaves. It just didn’t know that Wen Qingye had also spotted it.

The Purple-striped Beast waited quietly, biding its time for Wen Qingye to draw closer.

The Purple-striped Beast stared at Wen Qingye, a ferocious glint in its eyes. Wen Qingye’s cultivation was only at the Refining Spirit Fourth Layer, while the beast was at the Refining Spirit Fifth Layer Heaven. Generally, a Demon Beast’s strength far surpassed that of a human at the same level, so the Purple-striped Beast naturally had no fear of Wen Qingye.

SWOOSH!

Viciously kicking off the tree trunk, the Purple-striped Beast transformed into a purple afterimage, rushing toward Wen Qingye in an erratic trajectory.

But at that very moment, Wen Qingye, who had been walking forward with a calm expression, suddenly—!

Wen Qingye drew his One Thought Sword with lightning speed. He used the momentum to take a step back and, in the same motion, swung at the Purple-striped Beast with immense force.

The Purple-striped Beast had no time to react and could only try to jerk its head aside, struggling to evade Wen Qingye’s fatal strike.

SQUELCH!

Wen Qingye’s sword was as swift as lightning, slashing fiercely across the Purple-striped Beast’s neck. A fountain of blood erupted from the creature’s body.

The Purple-striped Beast’s body fell heavily to the ground with a THUD. It convulsed on the ground, blood seeping from its mouth. In less than ten breaths, the beast stopped moving, as dead as it could possibly be.

Wen Qingye looked at the Purple-striped Beast and thought to himself, ’Guess I’ll be having Purple-striped Beast for dinner tonight.’

Demon Beasts had been appearing constantly these past few days, and Wen Qingye had grown used to it.

There were no masters of the sword present to witness it, but Wen Qingye’s previous strike had been as fast as lightning. The Purple-striped Beast had also been moving at high speed, yet Wen Qingye had managed to slice its throat with a single slash. This was a testament to Wen Qingye’s composure and the high level of his Swordsmanship, evident in the finest of details.

It was just a shame the Water Curtain was not currently focused on Wen Qingye; otherwise, his display of Swordsmanship would have surely astounded everyone.

Time flowed on, passing in the blink of an eye.

The journey on the Ancient Dao was tedious. Everyone knew the Ancient Dao was long, and Wen Qingye ended up walking for two full months.

During these two months, Wen Qingye’s cultivation did not break through, but he did reach the peak of the Refining Spirit Fourth Layer. He was just a hair’s breadth away, just a single step from reaching the Refining Spirit Fifth Layer Heaven.

In those two months, besides encountering a few Demon Beasts, Wen Qingye also ran into people from the other Fifteen Countries. Two of them even developed the intent to kill him, wanting to snatch the Talisman Seal from his hands.

Wen Qingye took an arm from each of them before letting them go.

The moonlight was cold, and a light breeze carried a chilly bite.

’Is someone fighting up ahead?’

Wen Qingye suddenly sensed the sounds of a fierce struggle ahead and couldn’t help but creep closer.

As he moved forward, Wen Qingye realized the sounds were surprisingly familiar.

’It’s them!’

Wen Qingye’s brow furrowed at the realization.