Gates of the Myriad Realms Chapter 429

Tens of thousands of years later.

Ninety-nine layered universe, Taishang Dao Palace.

Deliberation Hall.

The Saintly Venerable sat on a high platform, playing with a gemstone in his hand.

This gemstone was the only clue.

Unfortunately—

Even now, he still hadn’t obtained the position of the Lord of Penglai Mountain.

In the cultivation of the Heaven-Connecting Art, he was stuck in the middle section of the Taishang Oblivion Ascension Scripture.

Neither aspect had made any progress.

—So he couldn’t activate this gemstone.

The Saintly Venerable sighed, about to put the gemstone away, when a streak of fire flew in.

The voice of an elder echoed from the communication talisman:

“Saintly Venerable, there are two exceptionally talented humans at the mountain gate, wishing to join our sect.”

The Saintly Venerable was greatly surprised.

Usually, when good prospects appeared, they would just be taken in. Why report it to him immediately?

“Is there a problem?” the Saintly Venerable asked.

“Not a problem—they are too outstanding, and this subordinate dared not make a decision arbitrarily,” the elder replied.

This thoroughly piqued the Saintly Venerable’s curiosity.

His figure flickered, and he instantly appeared at the entrance of Penglai Mountain.

At the reception pavilion by the mountain gate, stood two young women.

The elder’s voice already resonated in his ear:

“The young woman with long, flowing hair has a cosmic affinity that even surpasses the Three-Eyed Race; it’s something I’ve never seen in my life.”

“The young woman wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a sword at her waist possesses an astonishing sword aura that exceeds my understanding.”

The Saintly Venerable was moved for a moment, then cast his gaze towards the two women.

He was about to speak, when he suddenly sensed something, then furiously exclaimed:

“Are you Emperor Species still at it?”

“Get out!”

“I will never take another Emperor Species into my mission again!”

He held the gemstone in one hand, making it a bit inconvenient, and extended his other hand, forming a hand seal with one hand.

The transmission array above the reception pavilion immediately activated.

In an instant.

The two women were thrown out of the Taishang Dao Palace, teleported to another barren planet.

Whoosh—

They landed, standing on a bare mountainside, and exchanged glances.

“It seems we failed,” said Xiao Mengyu.

“Sigh, that guy was too perceptive; he immediately detected the scent of an Emperor Species on us,” Song Yinchen said with a hint of dissatisfaction.

Xiao Mengyu drew her Luoshen Sword and casually swung it.

The rocks beside them immediately scattered into countless fragments, revealing a newly carved, lifelike statue of the Saintly Venerable.

“Since entering the upper universe, your swordsmanship has constantly improved,” Song Yinchen remarked.

“Who is this guy?” Xiao Mengyu asked, examining the statue.

“I don’t know, he should be the boss of that Dao Palace—Shen Ye really dislikes him,” Song Yinchen said.

Xiao Mengyu looked for a few seconds, then suddenly asked, “What’s that?”

Song Yinchen followed her gaze to the statue, where one hand was forming a mystical seal and the other held a gemstone.

“Let me think, I actually noticed that gemstone just now—”

Song Yinchen closed her eyes, her hands quickly testing various hand seals.

A quarter of an hour later.

She shook her head dejectedly: “The power contained in the gemstone is too complex and profound. I only saw it for a glance, and I can’t deduce its function.”

“Let’s go,” Xiao Mengyu said.

“Where to?”

“Back to the Indeterminate Layer.”

“You’re giving up on finding Shen Ye?”

“Fool, we’re going to find Xu Xingke. He knows the most things, and maybe he’s seen that kind of gemstone.”

“Makes sense! If I had a gemstone like that, I’m confident I could figure out its purpose—maybe it’s that guy’s weakness!”

“Even if it’s not a weakness, it’s useful information.”

“Let’s go!”

…

Tens of thousands of years before tens of thousands of years.

The most prosperous era of the Immortal Kingdom.

Haoyang Heavenly Palace.

Everyone performed their duties.

The Sect Master was evaluating a newly compiled technique.

With a “bang,” two lines of small characters popped up, appearing before his eyes:

“Xu Qingfeng killed a wild boar.”

“He didn’t think this counted as slaying demons, so he gave up on activating the Demonic Mountain God Art.”

The Sect Master’s mouth twitched.

This wasn’t what he expected.

—He’s already gone, and it’s still being live-streamed?

On the other side, the Vice Sect Master was arranging various matters with several elders.

They were talking enthusiastically.

With a “bang,” several lines of small characters popped up, appearing before their eyes:

“Xu Qingfeng continued forward.”

“He encountered a demonic wolf and began to fight.”

“Xu Qingfeng struck with his blade, instantly killing it in one move!”

“He posed, thinking he was incredibly handsome.”

The Vice Sect Master and the elders finished reading, their faces full of helplessness.

On various cultivation platforms.

The true disciples were practicing, when with a “bang,” several lines of small characters popped up:

“Xu Qingfeng activated the Demonic Mountain God Art on the demonic wolf’s corpse.”

“The cultivation method has reached the first stage!”

“He sensed the improvement in his strength and couldn’t help but sneer, ‘I’m the coolest guy in Haoyang Heavenly Palace!'”

The true disciples’ martial arts and techniques were interrupted, and seeing these boastful words, they couldn’t help but look displeased.

In various cave dwellings.

The inner disciples were meditating quietly, when with a “bang,” two lines of small characters popped up, appearing before their eyes:

“Xu Qingfeng encountered a Black Demonic Tiger King.”

“He yelled, ‘Holy crap, I can’t beat this,’ and started to flee.”

“As he fled, he shouted towards you in the Haoyang Sect: ‘I’m going to die, my family, help me out!'”

“‘—No, why haven’t my senior brothers and sisters arrived yet?'”

“‘You can’t just watch your junior brother die, you must feel really bad!'”

“‘Help!'”

At this moment, the Sect Master had a constipated expression;

The elders were quite conflicted;

The disciples wanted to move but didn’t.

—This was an unprecedented situation!

By rights, this kind of trial was for cultivators to face life and death on their own, and others couldn’t interfere.

But he had a live stream!

Could you just watch someone die?

No!

Indeed, some people immediately flew towards the sect’s teleportation array, having even drawn their weapons.

Just as everyone was in a dilemma and panicking—

With a “bang,” several lines of small characters popped up, appearing before everyone’s eyes:

“Xu Qingfeng suddenly unleashed a magnificent, peerless, domineering, invincible, cool, and exquisitely unique blade technique.”

“He won!”

“He put away his blade and sighed before the demonic tiger’s corpse, saying, ‘As your lifelong enemy, I used all my strength in this strike. Rest in peace.'”

“He lightly blew on the edge of his blade.”

“—He wasn’t blowing off blood; he was blowing off loneliness like snow.”

Damn it!

He did it on purpose!

Everyone was furious.

—If you’re going to play like this every day, how are we supposed to cultivate?!

The Sect Master made a decisive move, soaring into the sky and landing before the Haoyang Stone.

“Sacred Stone.”

The Sect Master cupped his hands.

The Haoyang Stone emitted a slight hum, acknowledging his presence.

“Today, a newly admitted disciple, Xu Qingfeng, is disrupting the sect’s quiet cultivation by live-streaming text.”

“May the Sacred Stone revoke this privilege of his?”

The Sect Master’s attitude was exceptionally respectful.

—This Haoyang Stone was a sacred artifact of the sect, overseeing the entire Haoyang Heavenly Palace’s legacy, and had already gained intelligence.

No one dared to be presumptuous before it.

Not even the Sect Master.

The Haoyang Stone swayed, humming again.

It sounded displeased.

The Sect Master’s face darkened, and he hesitated for a long time, then, looking at the eager gazes of the cultivators below, he gritted his teeth and said:

“Alright.”

If the Sect Master said “alright,” then it was alright.

Twenty minutes later.

Shen Ye was brought back to the sect, directly to the back mountain.

“Senior brother, what is this place?”

He asked curiously.

The leading senior brother’s face was expressionless: “Demon Beast Dungeon—you don’t need to go down the mountain for trials. Go into this Demon Beast Dungeon and keep killing demon beasts until you reach the ninth stage, then come out.”

Shen Ye was shocked.

—Real-life Warcraft? Or Black Myth?

Alright!

I had just activated my Dharma Idol and dreamt that continuous live-streaming could make the Sect Master compromise—

I didn’t expect such benefits to follow!

No need to go to and fro, just fight here!

“Thank you, senior brother!”

Shen Ye clasped his hands gratefully.

The leading senior brother said, “It’s nothing. The Sect Master said that entering means you’ve accepted this trial.”

“Before your trial is completely finished, considering you must concentrate on slaying demons, the Haoyang Stone agreed to temporarily revoke your live-streaming privilege until all trials are completed.”

Shen Ye suddenly understood.

So that’s how it is!

That’s what they were planning!

To achieve the “Demonic Mountain God” title, one must slay nine types of demons.

Each type of demon’s strength must be at least twice that of the previous type.

This difficulty is not low.

He couldn’t live-stream for now.

Shen Ye was about to object when he saw the senior brother whisper:

“The demons in the dungeon have had their Dharma Idols sealed.”

Sealing Dharma Idols.

That would prevent their techniques from reaching their maximum power.

It was practically helping him!

This deal was acceptable!

“Disciple understands,” Shen Ye replied, cupping his hands.

He agreed!

The senior brother also breathed a sigh of relief: “Good that you understand. Here are the dungeon token, grain-abstinence pills, healing pills, emergency call array disk, meditation mat, and change of clothes. Go!”

Shen Ye was pressed onto an array, and the teleportation was immediately activated.

Whoosh—

…

This was a massive underground cavern.

In the rock walls of the cavern, caves of various sizes were carved out, sealing various demons and monsters.

Shen Ye had already killed the tiger demon; now he had to kill eight more types of demons.

—Strictly in order of strength.

If he messed it up, it would be quite troublesome.

He stood on the ground, looking up at the dense network of caves on the mountain walls.

“A snot-nosed kid.”

A disdainful voice echoed from one of the dungeon cells.

The massive underground cavern immediately erupted into a thunderous roar of laughter.

—These demons and monsters could tell that he was only at the ninth stage of the Dharma Realm.

As beings captured and thrown into the dungeon by Haoyang Heavenly Palace—

Their strength was extraordinary.

Shen Ye grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth:

“Good brothers, can’t you just cooperate instead of being a drag?”

—Negative descriptor “Good Brother” activated!

—Negative descriptor “Drag” activated!

In each cell, beside each demon, corresponding Dharma Realm puppets immediately appeared.

Dharma Realm puppets were “unaffected by anything.”

They would “mock, insult, provoke, secretly photograph, sneak attack, steal, and engage in various other behaviors towards the target.”

As for “Drag”—

With its cooperation, the puppets’ sneak attacks and thefts would almost never miss!

Shen Ye released the descriptors and then ignored these demons and monsters.

He took out his meditation mat, sat on it, and began to silently study the Taishang Oblivion Ascension Scripture.

Until the next day.

—The descriptor “Good Brother” could only be bestowed once per target per day.

So he released it again.

Then he continued his cultivation.

Seven or eight days passed like this.

Shen Ye opened his eyes.

Whoa!

Before him lay a small mountain of various treasures, piled up high.

—All of them were stolen by the Dharma Realm puppets from the demons and monsters while they were “dragging.”

At this point, Shen Ye had reached a critical part of his scripture cultivation. He silently made a mental note of the number and no longer bothered with them.

After that.

Every day, he would count the treasures on the ground.

Another seven or eight days passed.

The treasures stopped increasing.

Shen Ye had also broken through the scripture’s bottleneck, cultivating it to a level surpassing others.

Lines of faint small characters had already appeared:

“Congratulations.”

“You possess a unique understanding of the Taishang Oblivion Ascension Scripture and have received the true teachings of the Heaven-Connecting Art.”

“You have comprehended the Heavenly Demon Manifestation Great Art.”

“Description: When the Primordial Formless Heavenly Demon Saint King manifests its form, it can act in your stead; and you, in turn, will take its place, gaining its formless, immaculate abilities, entering an invisible state, undetectable by the creator and all beings.”

It was done!

Shen Ye stood up from the meditation mat, stretched his body, and let out a long breath.

This scripture was truly hard to cultivate!

After achieving the Heavenly Demon Manifestation Great Art, a vague feeling emerged in his heart.

He was only one final stage away from completely mastering the scripture.

Should he go for it in one go?

Shen Ye tiredly rubbed his temples.

Too tired.

Mentally exhausted.

Physically exhausted.

He had been sitting cross-legged for more than ten days; continuing to sit would be bad for his cardiovascular system and could easily lead to hemorrhoids.

He might as well get up and move around, clear his head, and rest a bit—

And while he was at it, complete the Haoyang Heavenly Palace trial.

Then, when his condition was at its peak, he would make the final sprint!

Shen Ye jogged around the area a few times, loosening up his body, before standing before the mountain of treasures.

He counted the demons’ treasures, collecting all of them.

—The treasures didn’t increase much in the last few days!

It seemed they didn’t have much good stuff left either.

Time to get down to business—

Shen Ye drew his Spring Rain Blade, slung it over his shoulder, and surveyed the entire dungeon again.

He saw that the demons in the cells were all bruised and swollen, looking terribly aggrieved.

The Dharma Realm puppets surrounded them.

The puppets occasionally punched, spat, swore, and emotionally manipulated them.

The demons’ expressions were numb.

—They had resisted countless times.

The puppets simply couldn’t be hit.

They could only ignore them.

Shen Ye looked around for a while, then suddenly his figure flickered, landing at the entrance of a large cell.

“What’s wrong with you?”

He asked the black祸斗 (huòdòu, a mythical fierce dog) in the cell.

“What’s wrong? You little brat, stealing everyone’s things, angering us, and you still dare to talk to me?” the 祸斗 roared.

“You were the one who first said I was ‘snot-nosed,'”

Shen Ye said, spreading his hands.

—That provoking voice was indeed first uttered by this 祸斗 demon beast.

“Get lost, snot-nosed kid!”

The 祸斗 coldly barked.

Shen Ye took two steps back and looked towards its head.

Above the 祸斗’s head, a line of text appeared:

“Arrogance.”

“Defensive descriptor, white-level (normal).”

“Description: Possessors of this descriptor are immune to all sneak attacks and theft; enemies can only engage them in frontal combat.”

“—Desire is the psychological defense mechanism of all beings.”

“—One of the seven basic defensive descriptors.”

Defensive descriptor!

Shen Ye was surprised.

He hadn’t expected to see such a rare defensive descriptor in this ancient era!

Hiss—

A bit tempted.

When would he get one too?

—Now that his gate ability had been upgraded to Level 1, he could already produce negative descriptors and defensive descriptors.

Shen Ye’s mind stirred, and he activated the power of the Gate of Sealing.

A line of faint small characters appeared:

“You must upgrade a descriptor to its highest possible level before acquiring a new descriptor.”

Tsk.

That’s how the Gate of Sealing works; it can only fully upgrade one descriptor at a time.

The descriptor he was currently upgrading was “Drag.”

Should he switch to a new gate ability?

He really needed to think this question through.

Shen Ye smiled, sat down outside the cell, and asked:

“Brother, how did you manage to get a defensive descriptor?”

“Get out!” the 祸斗 barked disdainfully.

Giving face was not an option.

Shen Ye looked at the sealed shackles on its four limbs and began to ponder.

—These demons had all had their Dharma Idols and special abilities sealed, only their basic attributes remained unchanged.

He was already lucky to be able to level up in this dungeon.

“Brother, the world is so beautiful, yet you’re so irritable. This is a sickness; it needs treatment,” Shen Ye said.

The 祸斗 let out an angry roar at him.

In an instant.

A large, vivid “Danger” character appeared above its head.

The Crisis Sense activated!

Shen Ye waved his hand, calling out the big skeleton.

“Take this dagger and go in and kill it.”

He handed the mythical-grade dagger, “Soulstealer,” to the big skeleton.

The big skeleton, without a word, took the dagger and walked to the cell door, pressing its hand on the array on the wall.

Whoosh—

The big skeleton was teleported in.

The 祸斗 roared angrily, pouncing straight at the big skeleton.

Its strength was around the eleventh or twelfth stage of the Dharma Realm. It didn’t bother to pay attention to Shen Ye, let alone Shen Ye’s summoned creature.

Crash—

The big skeleton’s entire skeletal frame scattered; it was instantly wiped out.

However, in its dying moments, the dagger had also pierced the 祸斗’s chest.

“When you wish to hit the target, the dagger hits the target.”

“Instant death upon contact.”

This was a mythical-grade dagger!

The 祸斗 let out an incredulous roar.

However, the dagger emitted a red light, instantly piercing through its body.

Bang.

The 祸斗’s corpse fell to the ground, motionless.

A bead fell from its mouth, rolled, and stopped in the corner.

Shen Ye opened the cell and first picked up the bead.

“Fire-Repelling Pearl.”

“Treasure.”

“Description: Ignores all fire-related attacks.”

Good stuff!

Shen Ye collected the bead and began to cultivate the Demonic Mountain God Art.

A short while later.

The second stage was completed.

He thought for a moment, then tried to draw some blood from the 祸斗, letting it float in mid-air, and began to practice another secret technique—

The Taishang Blood Demon Void Saint Refining Law!

Shen Ye continuously absorbed the 祸斗’s blood, extracting power from it to purify his own bloodline.

After half an hour.

He stopped the technique.

Two lines of faint small characters appeared:

“Your Emperor Species bloodline has been slightly purified.”

“All attributes +5.”

Not much improvement.

But it doesn’t matter—

Shen Ye glanced at the dense network of caves on the mountain wall outside.

“Excuse me, which monster here has exactly twice your strength?”

He asked.

Shadowy Whisper activated!

The corpse of the 祸斗 on the ground opened its eyes and said in a muffled voice:

“On the left wall, counting up from the bottom, the third cave. There’s a blood lion inside, whose strength is exactly double mine.”

“Thanks—but why was it imprisoned here?” Shen Ye asked.

“Attacked remote villages and devoured many humans.”

“Why wasn’t it killed?”

“Your disciples from Haoyang Heavenly Palace said its bones, flesh, and claws were valuable, to be killed when needed.”

“Understood, thank you.”

Shen Ye left the cell and went directly to the blood lion’s prison.

From the surrounding walls came a chorus of boos, louder than before.

Shen Ye looked around the caves, puzzled, and announced loudly:

“Hey, what do you mean?”

“Don’t you understand?” The blood lion stared coldly at him through the heavily sealed bars. “To kill us, you even sacrificed your companions. This is the most despicable act.”

“You humans—”

Shen Ye did not let it finish, and with a wave of his hand.

Whoosh!

The big skeleton jumped out again.

“The dagger is yours—this dagger is really useful, I like it.”

“Then it’s yours,” Shen Ye said.

“Really?”

“What’s between us, anyway!”

“Haha, it suits me perfectly—thank you.”

The big skeleton delightfully played with the dagger, its gaze turning towards the cell.

All the boos stopped.

“Wait,” the blood lion, seeing the bad situation, hastily asked, “Don’t you know your brother was used as cannon fodder by him?”

“Brother? No, the one who died just now was me,” the big skeleton shrugged.

It was you…

The entire cavern fell into a dead silence.

Shen Ye sighed, muttering:

“Enough chatting, let’s treat the disease and save people first.”

A vivid red “Danger” character immediately appeared above the blood lion’s head.

At the same time.

The big skeleton placed its hand on the teleportation rune on the cell door.

The next moment.

It appeared directly inside the cell.

The same story.

The same ending.

Shen Ye skillfully practiced the Demonic Mountain God Art, then purified his bloodline with the Taishang Blood Demon Void Saint Refining Law, and finally asked who to kill next.

On the other side.

Haoyang Heavenly Palace was holding a grand Dharma Assembly.

The Sect Master, Fu Wangchen, sat on a high platform, lecturing on a Daoist technique.

Below, the crowd was solemn.

The venue was adorned with auspicious clouds, and cranes flew gracefully.

At this moment, Fu Wangchen was explaining a critical point of the Daoist technique.

The elders and disciples listened intently.

*Clang.*

A familiar sound echoed in everyone’s ears.

Immediately after.

Small characters appeared line by line:

“That legendary man has left the dungeon.”

“Demons wailed behind him; yet on his handsome face, there was only resolve and determination.”

“He has cultivated the name of ‘Demonic Mountain God’!”

“Rejoice, everyone, you only need to gaze at him with admiration; there’s no need for any syrupy words!”

The venue fell into a deathly silence.

A disciple murmured softly:

“Damn it, who wants to say syrupy words to you?”

People clenched their fists tightly, suppressing the anger in their hearts.

On the high platform.

Sect Master Fu Wangchen took a deep breath, composed himself, and then spoke:

“Today, a disciple named Xu Qingfeng has achieved the title of ‘Demonic Mountain God’ within a month, demonstrating extraordinary talent.”

“I propose that he be admitted as a true disciple of the Sect Master.”

“Does anyone have any objections?”

There were thousands of disciples in Haoyang Heavenly Palace, yet only a handful could become true disciples of the Sect Master.

Moreover, there were many trials.

And they had to gain the recognition and support of every single elder.

—If even one elder didn’t agree, it wouldn’t happen!

Normally, such an incredibly important matter would require layers of discussions, followed by repeated screenings and eliminations.

But today—

“Agreed!”

The elders affirmed in unison.

“Very good, bring Xu Qingfeng here,” Fu Wangchen said.

Not long after.

Shen Ye stood in the center of the training ground.

Fu Wangchen spoke:

“Are you willing to become a true disciple of the Sect Master?”

“I am!” Shen Ye said.

“Very good, you need to collect enough rare treasures, at least one hundred and eight pieces—this is an ancient rule passed down in the sect.”

“Before you collect them all, I and the Haoyang Stone will once again reach an agreement.”

“The live stream will be temporarily shut down.”

“This is for your own good, to allow you to focus on collecting treasures in the world.”

“—Go, and when you have collected them, return to the sect, and I will impart the Daoist techniques to you.”

The Sect Master finished speaking in one breath.

The elders and disciples held their breath, waiting for Shen Ye to agree and leave.

Shen Ye was stunned for a moment, muttering:

“Do I need one hundred and eight treasures?”

“Precisely!” the disciples all echoed.

“It’s the rule!” the elders also said.

Shen Ye tapped his storage bag.

Clatter—

The treasures collected in the dungeon piled up like a mountain, scattered all over the ground.

“Reporting to the Sect Master, I seem to have acquired some treasures in the dungeon just now—the quantity should be sufficient.”

Shen Ye cupped his hands.

Everyone looked at the mountain of treasures, speechless.

“Damn it.”

Someone whispered.