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nFardark County in the Revered Ancient mainland had belonged to humans in ancient times. In fact, it was actually a satellite county to the humans’ Imperial Region. It got its name from the fardark fruit, which was widely known to be very helpful when seeking enlightenment of magical laws.

nBut then the broken face brought catastrophe. The aura of a god invaded heaven and earth, changing everything. The fardark fruits were never seen again after that. What was more, that county sustained a particularly severe invasion, and ended up with mutagen levels many times stronger than in other locations. As a result, it became unsuitable for habitation by intelligent species, and gradually turned into barren wilderness.

nThat said, because of the mutagen, there were plenty of mutant beasts and grues who lived there. The species who had once called the place home were forced to migrate to bordering locations, where they were constantly harassed by the mutant beasts and grues. It wasn’t that such species preferred to stay there. But heaven and earth were so immense that, for small species like them, there wasn’t really anywhere to go. After all, places without a lot of mutagen were already occupied by much stronger species.

nBesides, though they lived in dangerous circumstances, they could at least stick together and defend themselves against the grues and mutant beasts.

nThat was especially true considering that the county was in a unique location, positioned as it was between the Firemoon Darkheavens and the humans. It was actually a buffer zone between those two species, which brought some distinct advantages to the minor species who lived there.

nIn the east of Fardark County, one man and two women were traveling through the unending wilderness. They weren’t human, but they were very similar to humans. The main difference was that they had fleshy wings growing from their backs, and they all had a third eye on their forehead.

nThe person who had spoken earlier was the young man. He wore a black robe with golden embroidery. The gold threads glittered with light that automatically caused rifts to open up in the air nearby. That alone went to show how extraordinary the garment was. Wherever he went, an icy wind blew, making it seem like he was an emissary from a gloomy abyss.

nHe was taller than the average cultivator, and so well-built he looked like a mountain. Overall, he was intimidating. His facial features were stalwart, with a jaw as sharp as a saber. He looked firm, persistent, and cold. His eyes were as dark as midnight, but within his pupils glittered something cunning, callous, and brutal. It made it hard for most people to look him in the eye.

nAs he walked along, he toyed with a red eyeball. The eyeball was bloodshot, and struggled against him, emitting a red glow along with piercing howls of grief. Unfortunately, it was completely incapable of escaping the young man’s grasp.

nIf there were locals here to see that eyeball, they would recognize it immediately as a very terrifying monster that lived in the area called a freakeye demon. Freakeye demons were experts at escaping danger, and they were also very hard to track. What was more, they had an innate ability that allowed them to target the souls of their prey. Even a Void Returning cultivator who ran into one would be concerned.

nBut today… this young man was simply toying with the freakeye demon. In fact, after it howled in anguish a few more times, he finally just squashed it.

nThe young man didn’t seem to be in a very good mood as he coldly said, “This dirty wasteland makes you just want to throw up. I refuse to believe this is where our holy lands originated. Whatever species lives in a place like this must be dirty vermin, no different from mindless wild animals.”

nBut then a cold voice rang out from behind him. “Fellow Daoist Feng, you’re being a bit excessive. You know full well this place is like this thanks to Eminent Desolation. The holy lands had no choice but to leave back then. And most of the species here have relatives in the holy lands.

n“We’re in heaven, while they’re on earth living lonely, challenging lives. And thus, those high and mighty words of yours are pushing things a bit too far.” The person who just spoke was the young woman behind the young man. She was slender, with silver wings and extremely fair skin with a very faint pink sheen to it. She also wore black clothes with golden embroidery, except on her, that clothing seemed like something worn by an immortal in a painting. She had deeply arched eyebrows, eyes like calm, clear water. They were the type of eyes that would cause anyone who looked into them to like her, and at the same time, not dare to lust after her.

nIt looked like the young man wanted to say something back to her, yet was too nervous to do so. Instead of responding, he just looked up at the broken face high in the sky.

nThe other young woman laughed softly. “You’re not quite right, Fellow Daoist Yue Dong,” she said to the first young woman. “When the Grand Emperor and emperors of the various species left, all the talented and qualified people went with them. Those left behind were either people with ordinary talent or outright criminals. 1

n“Inferior people will always be inferior. This place has been infected with a godly aura for tens of thousands of years. The fact that they managed to keep reproducing after all these years is interesting. If you feel bad for them, Immortal Fairy Yue Dong, maybe you should find one of the inferior cultivators and do some dual cultivation. You could even leave some descendants here.”

nThis second young woman was delicately beautiful, with long black hair. Her waist was especially eye-catching, being as slender and supple as a willow tree. Her long, slender legs were just barely visible beneath her dark garment, but that only made her seem more attractive. That said, her words were biting and sarcastic.

nThe young woman named Yue Dong looked over at her coldly. “Are you looking to die, Lan Yao?” 2

nShe pulsed with Smoldering God fluctuations. As for the young woman named Lan Yao, her eyes also glittered with killing intent, and from her cultivation base fluctuations, she was also a Smoldering God!

nStrangely, though it seemed like they had come from the same place, there was also something that seemed different about them.

nSeeing the two young women glaring at each other, the young man frowned. Looking at Yue Dong, he coldly said, “Fellow Daoist Yue Dong, this is a joint operation backed by multiple holy lands. We need to follow the orders given by the holy lord of my species and set up the homing signals for those coming from the other holy lands. So why are you stirring up trouble? Don’t tell me you have ulterior motives?

n“In any case, you can’t say I didn’t warn you. If you insist on continuing to act like this, Fellow Daoist Lan Yao and I will have no choice but to arrest you!”

nFrigid yin energy spread out, turning into a host of illusory banners that caused bright colors to flash in the area, and resulted in a divine ability warding spell to appear.

nLan Yao smiled as she made a grasping gesture in front of her. A seven-colored sand swept into existence, turning into a vortex that spun overhead. It spread for thousands of meters, and was clearly ready to drop down at any moment.

nSeeing that the two of them were locking her down, Yue Dong’s eyes narrowed. “Since we have different daos, let’s just focus on the mission. I’ll go handle my part.”

nWith that, Yue Dong blurred out of existence, reappeared some distance away, then vanished again.

nNoting the direction Yue Dong had taken, the young man surnamed Feng and Lan Yao exchanged a glance.

nThe young man, whose name was Feng Lintao, chuckled coldly. “She’s at least sensible enough to leave on her own. That’ll save me some effort. Otherwise, given her personality, she’d definitely cause trouble for us going forward.” 3

n“Fellow Daoist Feng,” Lan Yao said with a sweet smile, “I helped you get rid of Yue Dong. But I can tell you, if you were lying about what you told me before we came here, I’m not going to play along.” Despite her sweet tone, her eyes were as cold as ice.

n“Don’t worry at all,” Feng Lintao said. “If it weren’t for that secret I learned from one of the ancient records in my clan, I wouldn’t have taken the initiative to join this mission. After all, there are gods in this place.” Feng Lintao again looked up at the broken face. Then he looked back at Lan Yao. “Besides, I showed you the evidence. What’s more, considering your daoist partner’s position back in our holy land, how could I possibly do anything to deceive you?”

nContinuing to smile, Lan Yao nodded.

nLooking off into the distance, Feng Lintao said, “Alright, let’s get moving. Based on the information I got from that weird beast, I learned that there are some lesser species around here. They’ll make the blood sacrifice we have to do a lot easier.”

n“Blood sacrifice? Fellow Daoist, surely you don’t look down on the Revered Ancient mainland that much. Do you really think there aren’t any powerful experts here at all?” Lan Yao smiled enigmatically.

n“I’m not that stupid,” Feng Lintao replied. “I said all that because of Yue Dong. I’ll naturally be cautious. But that weird eye confirmed that these lesser species don’t have any Smoldering Gods.” Feng Lintao started walking, then stopped and looked over his shoulder. “By the way, if Yue Dong is actually following us and tries to stop us, you know what to do. Right, Fellow Daoist Lan Yao?”

n“Of course. I’ll take care of it.” Lan Yao smiled and started walking. Together, the two of them vanished.

n***

nAsteroids fell in many other locations in the Revered Ancient mainland. Cultivators emerged and scattered to handle various missions from the holy lands. Many had their own agendas. But all of them would also do everything necessary to accomplish their missions as quickly as possible. All in all, when it came to leaving…. It was possible to enter the godwarding, but it wasn’t possible to leave it!

nObviously, there was some reason why all these people had willingly come here. As for whether or not there were some species who had known all along that this event would take place, and had prepared to offer assistance, that was impossible to say. Regardless, roughly a hundred asteroids fell, and the cultivators of what seemed almost like a scouting force secretly spread out into Revered Ancient….

n***

nThe secret invasion didn’t do anything to affect the grand banquet being carried out at God Mountain in the lands of the Firemoon Darkheavens. Rumbing booms rang out as auspicious signs continued to appear in the sky. God Mountain glittered brightly, and the sounds of bells rang through the lands.

nThe three stewards hovered in front of the statues of the three gods on God Mountain, emanating profound majesty. The divine likenesses were behind them, and the exuberant Firemoon people were in front of them. They were organized into three camps, and were also structured based on their cultivation base and status. There were nobles and powerful experts in great numbers, which was evidence of how terrifyingly powerful the Firemoons were in Revered Ancient.

nBeyond the Firemoons were the subsidiary species, who were all behaving very solemnly but with great power and majesty as well. Beyond them were the random cultivators who didn’t qualify to get any closer, and could only watch the festivities from a distance.

nThis was a Firemoon ceremony, and there wasn’t anything complicated or luxurious about it. Their species had always been domineering and straightforward. It started with the godpriests offering words of worship. Next, representatives of the nobility did the same. Then the orders of the stewards were issued by the master of ceremonies.

nXu Qing and the Captain were in disguise among the random cultivators, watching from a distance. When they heard the orders issued by the master of ceremonies, they conferred via projection.

n“Did you think it through, little Ah Qing?”

n“Yeah. I need to get the Grand Darkheaven title. No matter what.” Xu Qing had put a lot of thought into it on the road, and he was just about to fly out into the open to try to claim his title when the master of ceremonies’ tone and wording changed.

n“Next, we come to the darkheaven category of the Great Hunt! The person who took first place in the first round, that of moving mountains, was the human Xu Qing! The person who took first place in the second round, that held in the Mountain and Sea Region, was the human Xu Qing! The person who took first place in the third round, that held in the god domain, was the human Xu Qing!

n“With approval given by the High Gods, he is hereby awarded with the title of Grand Darkheaven! Xu Qing, please approach the podium for a meeting with the three stewards of our species!”

nThere was an immediate uproar. After all, though everyone already knew how the first two rounds ended, few people were aware of the details of the third round.

nXu Qing blinked a few times.

nThe Captain chuckled. “Looks like that silver hairpin worked wonders, huh?”

n1. Yue Dong: Yue is not a common surname. It’s a sort of fancy word for ‘pearl,’ specifically a kind of legendary magical pearl. Dong means ‘winter.’ It doesn’t come across as a common Chinese name, but at the same time, doesn’t seem like a daoist name. Madam Deathblade says that she initially thought this was a male name. Given that it’s a female name, she says it sounds like a manly girl or a tomboy. ☜

n2. Lan Yao. Lan is not on the list of 100 common surnames, but it is indeed a surname. It also means ‘orchid.’ Yao is a fancy character that means ‘jade, precious stone, nacre, mother-of-pearl.’ Madam Deathblade says that given the flower and jade, it sounds like a feminine and beautiful name to her. ☜

n3. Feng Lintao: Feng is not on the list of 100 common surnames, but it is a surname, though slightly rare. It means ‘wind.’ Lin means ‘wood, woods, forest’ and Tao means ‘big wave.’ Madam Deathblade says that the combination of characters related to nature make her think of someone that’s connected to nature somehow. She literally said, “nature man” lol. Quasi-spoilers here! In reality, this character’s name is not introduced in this chapter. We don’t find out his name until later, and until then, he’s just called ‘the young man surnamed Feng.’ There is no reason for his name to be kept a secret, the author just seemed to do it randomly. It’s much easier in Chinese to do that kind of thing. But in English, it makes things very awkward. If it’s once or twice, it’s not a big deal, but whole scenes, including action scenes, which just have ‘the young man surnamed Feng’ are a pain both to translate and read. What’s more, even after introducing his name, the author continues to mostly just call him ‘the young man surnamed Feng.’ In Chinese, it’s only one additional character, so it’s not as clunky. In any case, not only am I revealing his name slightly early, both for your sake and mine, I’m also going to mostly refer to him by his actual name, simply for ease of translation and reading. ☜

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